Disclaimer: Google image search through Custom Search JSON API / Programmable Search Engine is legacy and fragile. Existing google_api_key + google_cx setups may keep working until January 1, 2027, but broad Google image search is not expected to be available after that date and Google has not provided a direct Google Images API replacement path. Prefer Nadeshiko for sentence media or Gemini Image for generated images.

Auto Images - Anki Add-on

Adds media to Anki notes from:

• Yahoo image backfill, with legacy Google Custom Search support
• Nadeshiko sentence image/audio/text
• Gemini Image generation through Google GenAI

<img width="847" height="657" alt="image" src="https://github.com/user-attachments/assets/5f3a1d7e-02e0-468b-bf6e-2887e78c4413" />

Install

1. Install the add-on in Anki.
2. Open Tools -> AutoImage -> Settings and add the API keys you use.
3. Run Tools -> AutoImage -> Run or Browser -> Edit -> Auto Images once before using review hotkeys, so the hotkeys can reuse your selected fields.

API Keys

• Nadeshiko: https://nadeshiko.co/user/developer
• Gemini API: https://aistudio.google.com/apikey
• Legacy Google image search: https://developers.google.com/custom-search/v1/introduction and cx from https://programmablesearchengine.google.com/controlpanel/all

Settings

Open Tools -> AutoImage -> Settings. The settings UI is also used by Anki's add-on Config button.

Tabs:

• General: replace behavior, image-search provider order, and shared query prefix/suffix settings.
• Legacy Google: Google Custom Search API key and Programmable Search engine ID for existing Google setups.
• Nadeshiko: API key, sentence length bounds, sentence selection mode, default media/sentence fields, sentence languages, and query suffix.
• Gemini Image: Gemini API key, image model, aspect ratio, person-generation policy, and prompt template.
• Hotkeys: review-mode shortcuts for image search, Nadeshiko, and Gemini Image.

See config.json for the shipped defaults. Advanced users can still edit the raw JSON through Anki's add-on config storage, but normal setup should use the Settings UI.

Usage

• Open Tools -> AutoImage -> Run for a deck, or Browser -> Edit -> Auto Images for selected notes.
• Choose a Query Field.
• Choose a provider:
  • Image Search: image-search backfill using the provider order from Settings.
  • Nadeshiko: image/audio/sentence fields, with optional Sentence EN Field. Sentence selection can be longest, random, smallest, or median.
  • Gemini Image: generated image written to the target field.
• Click Run.

Yahoo is the default no-key image-search provider.

Review hotkeys:

• Image search backfill: Ctrl+Shift+G
• Nadeshiko image/audio/sentence: Ctrl+Shift+Y
• Gemini Image: Ctrl+Shift+U

Hotkeys use the last saved fields for that provider. Image Search and Gemini Image hotkeys overwrite the target image field. The Nadeshiko hotkey overwrites image/audio fields and writes sentence text when matching fields are available.

Logs

• Logs: user_files/auto-image.log
• Legacy Google quota counter: user_files/quota.json

Attribution

Inspired by the design and UX flow in the Yomitan backfill add-on: https://github.com/Manhhao/backfill-anki-yomitan