Sony is Defending its Controversial AI Camera Assistant on The Xperia VIII

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Sony is defending its new AI Camera Assistant feature, saying criticism is unwarranted. The feature, available on the Xperia 1 VIII, has sparked debate, but Sony believes it’s a positive addition and is puzzled by the negative reaction.

When the edited demo photos were revealed, people were shocked – and not in a good way. The photos were poorly exposed, the colors were off, and overall, they looked terrible, almost like a low-quality filter was used inappropriately. Here’s an example to illustrate the problem.

Sony explains that this feature is incredibly easy to use. Simply aim your camera at a subject, and it will instantly offer four different ways to adjust the photo’s style. Each option will modify things like brightness, colour, and background blur to create a unique look.

The feature’s marketing promises to find the “most photogenic angle,” but the demonstration only showed zooming in on a photo – there was no movement involved. As a result, users are frustrated with the poorly edited example photos and the missing demonstration of the promised angle, leading to criticism that Sony is adding AI features without providing real benefits.

People on X also criticized the photo examples Sony posted, calling the editing style bad. A trend even started where users exaggerated the brightness of their own photos and jokingly said it was the result of Sony’s AI camera assistant.

Sony’s demonstrations of this camera feature haven’t been very good, and the company is now trying to address concerns by showing more example photos and explaining how it works behind the scenes. They recently shared details on X (formerly Twitter) about what happens when you open the camera app.

We’re following up on our recent post about the AI Camera Assistant to explain how it works. This feature doesn’t actually change your photos after you take them. Instead, it analyzes the scene and suggests four different camera settings to help you achieve various creative looks. You’re free to pick one of these suggestions, or stick with your preferred settings.

— Sony | Xperia (@sonyxperia) May 15, 2026

The example photo provided wasn’t very impressive. It’s unclear if Sony plans to refine this feature, or if this is the final result. For now, if you buy a new Xperia phone, you might want to avoid using the AI Camera Assistant.

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2026-05-18 09:44