Google Vids adds personal avatars and conversational editing with Gemini Omni integration

Google Vids now lets you star in your own AI videos

OpenAI's Sora may have shut down, but Google apparently thinks there's still interest in a tool that lets you star in your own AI videos. On Thursday, the tech giant announced an update to Google Vids that will allow you to create a custom digital avatar that looks and sounds like you based on a selfie and a voice recording you upload. In addition, Google said it's bringing its multi-modal AI model Gemini Omni to Vids, letting you create videos using a combination of a written prompt and reference images you upload. Omni then mixes those inputs together to create the AI video you want. It can also be used to do things like swap out the background or fix the lighting in a video recorded on your phone, or add effects. Plus, Omni now supports step-by-step edits, meaning you can make changes to your video as you go instead of starting over from scratch. The updates push Google Vids beyond its original role as an AI-assisted workplace presentation tool to become more of an all-in-one video creation platform. By making Vids a part of Google Workspace, the company is telegraphing its use as a business tool for things like company updates or training videos, but personalized avatars and conversational edits could put it in closer competition with other AI video startups and tools like HeyGen, Synthesia, Captions, D-ID, and others. Google notes that the new AI avatars will be tied to the account holder's likeness, tied to their Google account, and watermarked invisibly with SynthID. (I suppose that means no one will be using the tool to make bizarre AI videos of Google CEO Sundar Pichai, the way that OpenAI CEO Sam Altman had let users do with Sora when it was available!) The company also says that access to personal avatars is limited to users in certain regions who are aged 18 or older.

You Can Now Star in Your Own AI Videos Using Google Vids

Aaron covers what's exciting and new in the world of home entertainment and streaming TV. Previously, he wrote about entertainment for places like Rotten Tomatoes, Inverse, TheWrap and The Hollywood Reporter. Aaron is also an actor and stay-at-home dad, which means coffee is his friend. Google is getting into the "star in your own AI-made videos without the need for a camera" game. The tech company said on Thursday that two new updates to Google Vids, its AI video creation tool, will let you star in your own videos, which you can now create with a typed prompt. Personal avatars are the first new feature I am referring to, and all you need to create a custom digital avatar of yourself -- which will look and sound just like you -- is to submit a selfie and a voice recording. The second update is the introduction of Google's AI model Gemini Omni to Google Vids. Together, these updates will let you create your own custom videos with a simple prompt and any reference photos you upload, bringing your vision to life. Omni mashes these inputs together, and the result is that personalized AI video you've been dreaming of. You can do small tweaks to your content by adding a different background, adjusting the lighting in the video and adding a bunch of other post-production effects to make your Google Vid pop. And if you make an error, Omni lets you go step by step through your video edits to streamline the process. That's a nice update compared to the old way of scrapping an entire project and starting from scratch. The days of Google Vids as an AI-assisted workplace tool are over, as these updates evolve the platform into a full-fledged video creation tool. Vids is now part of Google Workspace, so you can use it to create videos that align with your business's communication materials (think onboarding videos). Personal avatars help make this content more, well, personalized and conversational, which may further engage the viewer. It's not the first tool of its kind (see HeyGen and Synthesia as examples of what's already out there), but having Google's name associated with this kind of AI-assisted video creation will likely spark significant competition. For transparency's sake, the AI-generated content created here will include an invisible SynthID watermark, letting people know it was generated by AI and is not representative of real life. As for the new personal avatars feature, these images will be tied to a person's Google account and will be available only to people in certain regions who are 18 or older. A Google spokesperson didn't immediately respond to a request for comment.

Google Vids Gets Conversational Editing Tools and Personal Avatars

Google Vids has been updated with the Gemini Omni model and personal avatars, allowing it to edit and generate clips via almost any method, as well as enabling people to star in their videos with just a few clicks. Gemini Omni allows users to create anything from any input, including audio, video, photos, and text. The model is friendlier to natural conversational text, and the update to Google Vids means that video editors can describe what they want to see. "Start with a simple text prompt in natural language, and add image references -- like a photo or a rough sketch -- for more detail. Omni mixes your inputs to generate a video that matches your vision," Google says. That natural conversation prompting extends to editing. Now, when the users want to make changes to the video, they can simply describe what they want to see. For example, if the user wants to see a photo turned into a video but with some changes to the photo, say a different hue, then video editors simply type that into the prompt box and the software does the rest. "Whether you're refining a video you generated with Omni or a clip you shot on your phone, you can use everyday language to prompt Vids to swap backgrounds, fix lighting or add effects," Google adds. Google Vids is also rolling out personal avatars, which essentially allow the user to deepfake themselves. TechCrunch compares the feature to OpenAI's now-shuttered app Sora. Google Vids started out life as a workplace presentation tool, but these updates make it more of a standalone video generator and video editor. Every clip generated or edited on Google Vids will contain an invisible SynthID digital watermark, allowing others to verify the video is AI. Gemini Omni and personal avatars are available in Google Vids for Google AI Pro and Ultra subscribers and Google Workspace business customers. "Access to personal avatars is currently limited to users in certain regions who are 18 or older. Personal avatars are linked to a user's Google Account and are restricted to the account holder's likeness," Google adds.

You can now edit videos in Google Vids by simply describing the changes

Gemini Omni powers Google Vids' new editing tools, and personal avatars are joining too Google is bringing Gemini Omni and personal avatars to Google Vids, expanding the app's AI-powered video creation tools for paid users. Gemini Omni can now generate and edit clips through natural language, while personal avatars let users appear in videos without recording themselves on camera. Vids already offered Veo-powered video generation, AI presenters, screen recording, and tools for turning Slides presentations into narrated videos. Omni expands that setup into a more complete editing workflow, where users can keep refining a clip through conversation instead of rebuilding it after every change. Gemini Omni handles the entire editing process Gemini Omni was announced at Google I/O 2026 as an all-purpose content model capable of working from text, images, sketches, voice recordings, and existing footage. Inside Google Vids, users can begin by describing the clip they want and add reference images for more control over the final result. Recommended Videos Once the first version is ready, you can continue chatting with Omni to change the background, improve the lighting, add effects, or adjust individual parts of the scene. The same tools also work on videos recorded using a phone. The conversational approach gives Omni an advantage over simpler video generators. Each new instruction builds on the last, helping preserve the look, setting, and subjects across repeated edits. It also removes much of the technical friction that comes with traditional editing software like Premiere Pro, DaVinci Resolve, or Final Cut Pro. You can now create an avatar that looks and sounds like you Personal avatars bring another interesting option to Vids. Upload a selfie and a short voice recording, type the script, and Google will create a digital version of you to deliver it on screen. The feature could come in handy for training videos, product demonstrations, company updates, or presentations where you do not have the time or equipment to record yourself properly. Gemini Omni and personal avatars are available to Google AI Pro and Ultra subscribers and eligible Workspace business customers. Personal avatars are limited to adults in select regions and tied to the account holder's likeness. Every generated clip also carries an invisible SynthID watermark.