6 hours ago
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If you've been on Instagram or TikTok lately, you might've seen the "hug baby me" trend. It's an AI-generated image of you as a child, being hugged by you now. It's heartwarming, nostalgic and realistic-looking -- and much more wholesome than that weird action figure trend.
This has substance and soul. Ask any therapist what the key to healing and happiness is, and a lot of it comes back to loving your inner child. Now you can hug him or her!
It's like a little postcard of personal growth and it's super easy to do. I love using AI for more abstract tasks like this. Sometimes it's really good, other times comically shocking -- like when AI had me hugging a reindeer in my holiday card attempt. I've also used it to predict my future baby's face, test out hairstyles and colors, see how I'll age and try outfits on before I buy them.
Let's see if this "hug baby me" trend will also be a laugh. It's bound to be fun, even if it flops. Get ready to tear up.
Create a photo hugging younger you
Getting set up is easy. All you need is two photos of yourself -- one of you now and one of you as a kid. Make sure you're the only person in the photo. Group shots won't work. Try to match the two images as closely as you can, including the angle and the stance. Once you have the two photos, it's time to get creating.
You'll be using Google Gemini to create the image, via Nano Banana, Gemini's latest image generation update. The model is known for combining multiple photos and items to merge together in the same shot. It's free to use, but premium access provides more advanced features.
Head to gemini.google.com and open a new chat. You know you're in the right place when you see the banana icon under the chatbox.
For the prompt, try to describe the desired scene and setting. The more specific, the better. For example, use keywords like "Polaroid," and describe the background, the poses and the emotion you want to convey.
Here's a good first prompt: "Take a photo with a Polaroid camera. The image should look like a normal photograph. It should be taken with a flash, so the photo is clear and crisp. Don't change the faces. Keep all features the same. The background could be a nice art piece but that shouldn't be the focus. They are hugging and smiling. This is for the 'hug my younger self' trend."
I used these two images. I wish the younger image was clearer, but this should still work.
Me now, and me as a child.
Amanda Smith/CNETI made sure to select the Create Image button before I uploaded my photos and prompt. And right out of the gate Gemini nailed it. So accurate!
I replied with a prompt asking it to remove the gray border and make my hair a touch lighter, but it got a bit funky. It made my hair super blonde and changed my hairstyle. It also didn't remove the gray border.
Back to the original. I asked it to use the first image (without changing the people) but give a second background option.
Even better!
You can play around with the different backgrounds and photo types to pull on the heartstrings more. A cool idea would be to add a third photo of your childhood home and ask Gemini to use that as the background.
This is such a fun trend if you used to be into scrapbooking or want a way to digitize your childhood photos.
The verdict?
I'm obsessed. I sent my photo to my wife immediately and she asked me to do hers. She said it's great for keeping promises to yourself -- making sure you don't disappoint your child self.
This is a really fun and proactive way to play with AI. It's a trend that has much more depth than those that've come before. I'm going to print it off or even put it as my phone wallpaper. I plan to add it to my 2026 digital vision board as I'm planning out my new year goals and intentions.
Don't skip the "hug my younger self" trend.
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English (US) ·