---
title: "What is image generation?"
description: "Image generation synthesizes or edits a picture from a prompt or another picture, and stores the result as an image."
url: "https://pixeltable.com/learn/what-is-image-generation"
updated: "2026-09-29"
vertical: "Vision"
doc: "https://docs.pixeltable.com/platform/type-system"
---

# What is image generation?

Image generation synthesizes or edits a picture from a prompt or another picture, and stores the result as an image.

Updated: 2026-09-29


## On this page

- [How it works](https://pixeltable.com/learn/what-is-image-generation#how-it-works)
- [What it is not](https://pixeltable.com/learn/what-is-image-generation#what-it-is-not)
- [Comparison](https://pixeltable.com/learn/what-is-image-generation#comparison)
- [Where Pixeltable fits](https://pixeltable.com/learn/what-is-image-generation#where-pixeltable-fits)
- [Questions](https://pixeltable.com/learn/what-is-image-generation#questions)

## How it works {#how-it-works}


- A column holds the prompt or the source image.
- A generation model writes a new image.
- The new image is a column you can index later.

## What it is not {#what-it-is-not}

It is not visual search, and it is not detection.

## image generation: this, and the thing it is confused with {#comparison}

|  | This | Not this |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Output | A new picture | A box or a neighbor |
| Input | Prompt or source image | A catalog query |
| Stored | On the row | Only in the provider’s UI |

## Where Pixeltable fits {#where-pixeltable-fits}

Pixeltable stores generated images as computed image columns. The provider can be a hosted generator or a local one.

## Questions {#questions}

### How does image generation work? {#faq-1}

A column holds the prompt or the source image. A generation model writes a new image. The new image is a column you can index later.

### What is image generation often confused with? {#faq-2}

It is not visual search, and it is not detection.

## In the blog

- [fal.ai: Fast FLUX and Stable Diffusion Image Generation in Pixeltable](https://pixeltable.com/blog/fal-ai-image-generation-pixeltable)
- [OpenAI GPT-4o: Complete Multimodal AI Integration with Vision, Audio, and Embeddings in Pixeltable](https://pixeltable.com/blog/openai-gpt4-multimodal-integration-pixeltable)
- [Replicate: Access Thousands of ML Models for LLMs, Images, and Audio in Pixeltable](https://pixeltable.com/blog/replicate-model-marketplace-pixeltable)
- [Together AI: Fast Open-Source LLM Inference with Llama 3.3 and FLUX in Pixeltable](https://pixeltable.com/blog/together-ai-llm-inference-pixeltable)
- [Pixeltable July 2026 release: SAM 3, Nano Banana, Nebius, and an agent-friendly column API](https://pixeltable.com/blog/pixeltable-july-2026-release-highlights)
- [Creative Image Generation with Pixeltable's Reve Integration](https://pixeltable.com/blog/reve-image-generation-pixeltable)

## Related

- [Documentation](https://docs.pixeltable.com/platform/type-system)
- [Creative Image Generation with Pixeltable's Reve Integration](https://pixeltable.com/blog/reve-image-generation-pixeltable)
- [fal.ai: Fast FLUX and Stable Diffusion Image Generation in Pixeltable](https://pixeltable.com/blog/fal-ai-image-generation-pixeltable)