India Leads Global Adoption of Google’s Nano Banana AI Model for Creative, Local Image Generation Despite Privacy Concerns

Google’s image-generation model, referred to as Gemini 2.5 Flash Image, has ignited a global craze for the Gemini app since its launch last month. This trend is particularly evident in India where the model has taken on a unique local flavor, with retro portraits and indigenous trends going viral, even as privacy concerns begin to surface.

India leads the way in terms of Gemini 2.5 Flash Image usage, according to David Sharon, head of multimodal generation for Gemini Apps at Google DeepMind, who spoke during a recent media session. The model’s popularity has also propelled the Gemini app to the top of the free app charts on both the App Store and Google Play in India, and the app has climbed to the top of global app stores’ charts as well, according to Appfigures data.

India’s large smartphone market and extensive online population make it an ideal candidate for adoption, but what is particularly interesting to Google is not just the number of users engaging with Gemini 2.5 Flash Image, but how. Millions of Indians are interacting creatively and in some unexpected ways with the AI model.

One notable trend is the revival of retro Bollywood looks, where Indians use Gemini 2.5 Flash Image to imagine themselves during the 1990s era, complete with fashion, hairstyles, and makeup typical of that time. This trend is specific to India, Sharon informed reporters.

A variation of this retro theme is what some are calling the “AI saree,” where users generate vintage-style portraits of themselves wearing traditional Indian attire.

Another local trend is the creation of selfies in front of cityscapes and iconic landmarks, such as Big Ben and the U.K.’s retro telephone booths.

“We saw a lot of that in the beginning,” Sharon said.

Indian users are also experimenting with Gemini 2.5 Flash Image to transform objects, create time-travel effects, and even reimagine themselves as retro postage stamps. Others are generating black-and-white portraits or using the model to visualize encounters with their younger selves.

Some of these trends originated elsewhere but gained global attention thanks to India’s active participation. One example is the figurine trend, where people generate miniature versions of themselves, often placing them in front of a computer screen. The trend first emerged in Thailand, spread to Indonesia, and became popular worldwide after gaining traction in India.

In addition to Gemini 2.5 Flash Image, Google has observed a trend where Indian users are utilizing the Veo 3 AI video-generation model on the Gemini app to create short videos from old photos of their grandparents and great-grandparents.

The popularity of the app in India has been substantial. Between January and August, the app saw an average of 1.9 million monthly downloads in the country – a figure that is approximately 55% higher than in the U.S. – accounting for 16.6% of global monthly downloads, according to Appfigures data shared exclusively with this news outlet.

India’s download count has totaled 15.2 million this year until August; the U.S., on the other hand, has had 9.8 million downloads so far this year, per Appfigures data.

Daily downloads of the Gemini app in India significantly surged following the release of the Gemini 2.5 Flash Image update, beginning on September 1 with 55,000 installs across both app stores. Downloads peaked at 414,000 on September 13 – a 667% increase – with Gemini holding the top overall spot on the iOS App Store since September 10 and on Google Play since September 12, including across all categories, according to Appfigures data.

Despite India leading in downloads, the country does not lead in in-app purchases for the Gemini app, which has generated an estimated $6.4 million in global consumer spending on iOS since launch, per Appfigures. The U.S. accounts for the largest share at $2.3 million (35%), while India contributes $95,000 (1.5%). However, India posted a record 18% month-over-month growth in spending, reaching $13,000 between September 1 and 16 – compared to an 11% global increase during the same period. This puts India seven percentage points above the global rate and more than 17 points ahead of the U.S., where growth was under 1%.

Privacy concerns surrounding users uploading personal photos to Gemini for transformation have also arisen.

“When a user asks us to fulfill their query, we do our best to fulfill that query. We don’t try to assume what the user’s intent is,” Sharon said when addressing questions about data misuse and privacy concerns among users in India and other top markets. “We’ve really tried to improve that, and we have improved that to be bold and fulfill your request.”

Google places a visible watermark on images generated by Gemini 2.5 Flash Image and also embeds a hidden marker using its SynthID tool to identify AI-generated content. SynthID allows Google to detect and flag whether an image was created using its models.

Sharon informed reporters that Google is testing a detection platform with trusted testers, researchers, and other experts. The company also plans to launch a consumer-facing version that would allow anyone to check whether an image is AI-generated.

“This is still day one, and we’re still learning, and we’re learning together. There are things that we might need to improve on in the future, and it’s really your feedback from users, press, academia, and experts that helps us improve,” Sharon said.