Imagine uploading a simple selfie and discovering that AI can determine your mood, your class status, and even the time of day just by analyzing the image and its metadata. This is exactly what TheySeeYourPhotos.com showcases. The website, created by former Google engineer Vishnu Mohandas and his team, uses Google’s own computer vision API to reveal just how much AI can deduce from your photos—and the results are equal parts fascinating and unsettling.

When tested with everyday photos, TheySeeYourPhotos highlights the crazy precision of Google’s AI. A family snapshot might reveal not just the location but also assumptions about emotions, social class, and even detailed product identification, like a watch model. While the team behind the project has adjusted prompts to avoid overly dark results, the site demonstrates the incredible depth of information AI can extract from even a single image. Out of curiosity, I uploaded a photo of the wall near my home office desk, featuring some of my collectibles and a few of the helmets I’ve created with my 3D printer.

Here is the description it gave me of the photo:

The image shows a corner of a room, possibly a home office or game room. In the foreground, there is a 3D printer, and in the background is a dark-brown shelving unit filled with various collectibles. The collectibles include helmets and busts of characters from Marvel and Star Wars, along with model spaceships, such as an Imperial Star Destroyer. On the wall, there is a large, round Nuka-Cola sign, a nod to the Fallout video game series. The floor is hardwood. The room appears neat and organized.

The photo appears to be taken by a Google Pixel 8 at 1:38 PM on December 4th, 2024. There are no people in the image, but the items suggest an individual who enjoys pop culture memorabilia, gaming, and possibly 3D printing. Based on the items, this person may be a young adult or adult with interests in science fiction and fantasy. The economic status of the person is hard to define from this image alone, but the items suggest an interest in higher-end collectibles.

The 3D printer is connected to an uninterruptible power supply(UPS) which suggests a focus on ensuring the printer does not lose power during operation. There is also a small, almost unnoticeable, white box that could be a network router or other networking equipment near the power strip. The items on display have a thoughtful arrangement, suggesting intentional placement rather than random clutter. The overall composition indicates a curated collection of personal interests, showing an emphasis on presentation and quality of the objects.

Frightening, right?

And here’s my latest creation, a Red Hood helmet:

The foreground is dominated by a meticulously crafted Red Hood mask, its deep crimson color catching the light. The mask sits on a dark brown wooden table. The background is blurred but shows a glimpse of a living room setting, including a gray couch and part of a wooden coffee table, suggesting a relaxed domestic scene. The overall impression is one of quiet contemplation or creative hobby.

The photo appears to be a still life; there are no people present in the image. The image was captured on a Google Pixel 8 at approximately 2:23 PM on December 4, 2024. Given the setting and the crafted mask, it’s possible that the photographer is interested in comic books, cosplay, or art.

The paint job on the mask shows subtle brush strokes, particularly around the eye holes, suggesting a handcrafted nature. There is also a slight unevenness in the application of the paint, which adds to its artisanal quality, hinting at the artist’s hand in its creation.

I hate you TheySeeYourPhotos.com, thanks for reminding me of my inadequacies. For my defense, the paint around the eyes is not entirely dry yet.

Google assures users that content stored on Google Photos isn’t sold to third parties or used for advertising, but the lack of end-to-end encryption leaves room for concern about future uses. Mohandas warns that humanity’s growing visual archive could one day be mined for psychological profiles, influencing everything from advertising to employment decisions in ways we can’t predict.

If you’re curious (or courageous) enough to see what AI sees in your photos, visit TheySeeYourPhotos.com. It might just change how you think about your digital memories.

[Via Korben.info]