Google's latest tools could change how artists use AI
Why artists should explore Google's new AI announcements from I/O 2025
If you are not a subscriber of The Fanbase Builder, join the hundreds of artists, creators, and music industry executives who receive it for free.
Let’s dive into today’s topic:
Google's latest tools could change how artists use AI
Google's recent I/O 2025 keynote introduced AI capabilities that could reshape creative workflows for musicians and industry professionals.
Why it matters
AI represents one of the most significant technological shifts since social media emerged fifteen years ago. Whilst many artists already use tools like ChatGPT or Claude for content creation and research, Google's latest announcements position the tech giant as a major competitor in the AI space.
Google's new AI models have topped performance benchmarks, potentially offering artists more powerful alternatives to existing tools. These developments matter because AI increasingly influences how artists create content, collaborate across language barriers, and manage their careers.
Understanding these advances helps artists decide which tools best serve their creative and marketing needs.
How it works
Explore the full lists of announcements. Below is a selection of what I find meaningful for artists. Please note that I’m not recommending or disapproving of these tools. I haven’t tested them yet, so I can’t.
Gemini 2.5, Google's language model, now outperforms ChatGPT on industry benchmarks, potentially offering more accurate and helpful responses.
Live language translation in Google Meet could eliminate language barriers when working with international artists or with local teams when entering new markets.
Project Astra Visual Interpreter is demonstrated in a video featuring a musician with a visual impairment, who uses it to help him navigate his career and create music.
Flow creates cinematic films with controllable characters and scenes. Veo 3 produces videos with accompanying audio.
Imagen 4 generates high-quality images with improved text rendering.
Music AI Sandbox and Lyria 2 can arrange vocals that sound like solo singers or full choirs. Lyria RealTime enables interactive music creation and real-time performance control.
Yes, but..
Google's AI tools reflect the same Western bias found in other major tech platforms, limiting global accessibility.
Flow remains US-exclusive and requires a subscription: Google AI Pro costs $19.99 monthly, while Google AI Ultra demands $249.99 monthly. This creates significant cost barriers for emerging artists who might most benefit from advanced creative tools.
Take action now
Artists currently using ChatGPT or Claude could experiment with Google's AI tools to determine whether they better suit their workflows.
Your thoughts
Further reading
100 things we announced at I/O (Google Blog)
Google I/O 2025 keynote in 32 minutes (The Verge on YouTube)
Google has a new tool just for making AI videos (The Verge)
How Visual Interpreter Helps People who are Blind and Low-Vision Navigate the World (Google on YouTube)
At Google I/O, everything is changing and normal and scary and chill (Platformer)
Google brings a music-generating AI model to its API with Lyria RealTime (TechCrunch)
Googles D-day tegen de hele AI-wereld (AI Report) - In Dutch, it’s my main source for everything AI.