Google’s Made You Look uses Pixar characters to trick kids into smiling for the camera

Most of the new camera features Google has brought to Pixel devices in recent years have involved AI-based post-processing. Made You Look, announced at Tuesday’s Made by Google 2024 event, is different. It reaches back into the history of photography to tap into a perennial favorite: tricking fussy children into smiling.

Sure, there are already a number of AI features that can help, including Best Take. But where’s the fun in that? Following in the footsteps of generations of exhausted parents waving stuffed animals and making funny faces in a vain bid to make children smile, Made You Look flashes a pair of cartoon characters to get a better shot.

The feature will be available on the Pixel 9 Pro Fold when it launches next month. It’s for foldable phones, as it requires a front-facing display as you snap the photo. It’s a clever use of that external screen.

“Turn the feature on, unfold the camera and an eye-catching visual — like a bright yellow chicken — will play on the outer screen,” Google writes. “The visual will play on the outer screen and respond to hold their attention so you can get the shot.”

Google will also be adding licensed characters in the future, beginning with Joy, Amy Poehler’s character from Pixar’s “Inside Out” series.