Searching for a photo? Updated EyeEm app’s AI uses keywords to find it

EyeEm is an app that integrates both a photo-sharing platform with a place to buy and sell images – think Instagram meets Shutterstock. On August 26, the company announced an app update that will automatically tag photos, cutting back on upload times, and making photos easier to search.

Called EyeEm Vision, the artificial intelligence software was programmed to recognize not just physical objects, but broad concepts like “lifestyle,” “natural disaster,” and “bonding.” The company says it developed the feature using deep learning, which essentially allows computers to track human input and learn from it.

The tool will suggest up to 20 keywords on each photo, and along with user input, each image can use up to 25 search terms. While the feature is nice for the social aspect, the real push is for selling those images by making them easier to find.

The software was first launched in a desktop-only version in September of last year. The tool also uses location data and contextual information to help automatically categorize shots.

“Since EyeEm introduced EyeEm Vision keywording in the web upload tool, I’ve seen a significant increase in sales every month,” said EyeEm community member David Crunelle. “From a rough $10 to $50 per month in sales, the addition of precise keywords increased my monthly sales between $150 and $500.”

EyeEm’s new iOS-only app called the Roll also received the same tools when it was released earlier this summer. Unlike EyeEm’s original app, the Roll isn’t for selling photos, but is designed to organize personal photos and can even choose the best one.

EyeEm isn’t the first company to use artificial intelligence to sort out images. Shutterstock released a mobile app with automatic keywords last month, and 500px is beta testing a program that allows users to sketch out what they are looking for.

The EyeEm Vision feature was added today to both the iOS and Android app, both free in their respective app stores.