Nano banana trend (Photo via Google Gemini on X) Every few months, the internet finds a new obsession, about something fresh and fun. But in 2025, these trends are not just driven by memes or celebrities. They’re now powered by AI.This year social media has been overtaken by a wave of AI-generated content that’s more than just pretty pictures, and how these AI-driven trends are being generated and advancing with every update.Two of these viral waves like the Ghibli-style image trend or Google’s “Nano Banana” toy figurine craze became the most famous one among the generative AI creativity to play with and it is being shared online. AI trends of 2025 that social media went crazy over
The Ghibli trend
Earlier this year, the internet was flooded with dreamy, hand-drawn-style portraits that looked straight out of a Studio Ghibli film. This wave took off shortly after OpenAI launched GPT-4o with enhanced image-generation features. People began using it to turn pets, homes, everyday moments, and selfies into soft-lit anime scenes bursting with nostalgia and charm.As OpenAI COO Brad Lightcap revealed in a post, over 700 million Ghibli-style images were generated by more than 130 million users within days. “What if my life was a Ghibli film?” became the unspoken theme, giving in a feeling of deep nostalgia and a moment of virtual escapism.OpenAI’s servers struggled under the demand, leading to temporary delays and new limitations, like capping free users to just three image generations per day. Just as the Ghibli wave started to tone down, another trend surged, but this time from Google.
The Nano Banana trend
Google’s response to the image-gen craze came wrapped in a lot of fun and ‘plastic packaging’. Codenamed Nano Banana, this viral tool within the Gemini 2.5 Flash Image model changed selfies and portraits into collectible 3D figurines, nearly inspired by the Funko Pops meets meme culture.In contrast to the emotional pull of Ghibli-style art, Nano Banana was more polarised towards the absurdity and more playfulness where, users could turn themselves into mini action figures, boxes, mentioning themes like “space explorer,” “superhero,” or “retro anime packaging.”Celebrities, influencers, and even politicians all joined the trend. Josh Woodward, Vice President at Google Labs said on an X post that the Nano Banana tool has already seen explosive growth, over 200 million image edits in a short time. It also brought a surge of 10 million new users to the Gemini ecosystem.Here are the easy steps to create Nano Banana image for freeOpen the Google Gemini app or websiteUpload a selfie or portrait, the clearer the better.
Nano Banana trend (Photo: via X)
Enter a prompt“Make me a toy figurine inside a vintage action-figure box”“Turn me into a collectible with glossy plastic texture and toy packaging”Add suitable customizations like, try props, roles, or packaging themes like “astronaut version,” “fantasy RPG,” or “retro arcade style.”Download and share your customised image on Instagram or WhatsApp.