Google injects AI into Maps in major update

1 month ago

By Trevor Mogg October 26, 2023 11:35PM

Screenshots showing disconnected caller features for Google Maps.

Google introduced a awesome update for Maps connected Thursday, adding a bunch of caller features that make nan app moreover much powerful.

The institution has been moving difficult to bring AI smarts to its suite of devices successful caller months, and truthful it’s nary astonishment to spot Google Maps getting immoderate attraction successful this area.

The caller Immersive View for Routes feature, for example, uses AI to bring elaborate previews of planned journeys.

“Say you want to motorcycle on nan h2o to nan Palace of Fine Arts successful San Francisco,” Google’s Chris Phillips said successful a blog post outlining nan caller features. “Just petition cycling directions, past pat nan Immersive View preview to spot your way successful a stunning, multidimensional position from commencement to finish.”

Phillips continues: “You tin hole for each move arsenic if you were location pinch detailed, ocular turn-by-turn directions, and usage nan clip slider to scheme erstwhile to caput retired based connected adjuvant information, for illustration simulated postulation and upwind conditions. That way, you tin easy debar riding during rainy upwind aliases dense traffic.”

Google CEO Sunar Pichai besides highlighted nan caller characteristic successful a station connected societal media connected Thursday:

Immersive View for Routes starts rolling retired this week for Amsterdam, Barcelona, Dublin, Florence, Las Vegas, London, Los Angeles, Miami, New York, Paris, San Francisco, San Jose, Seattle, Tokyo, and Venice, pinch much cities being added complete time.

Google has besides launched Lens successful Maps, a much precocious type of nan existing Search pinch Live View feature. Lens successful Maps uses AI and augmented reality to thief you orient yourself erstwhile you get astatine a caller destination. You tin do this simply by selecting nan Lens icon successful nan hunt barroom and raising your handset to find accusation astir amenities specified arsenic ATMs, transit stations, restaurants, java shops, and stores.

The app is besides getting much elaborate navigation maps for an moreover smoother personification experience, and doing much for electric-vehicle drivers by adding further charging position information, “including whether a charger is compatible pinch their conveyance and whether nan disposable chargers are fast, medium, aliases slow to thief you find nan charging position that champion meets your needs,” Phillips said.

Finally, Maps’s hunt usability is getting a boost. Phillips explains: “Now, erstwhile you hunt successful Maps for circumstantial things for illustration nan champion spot to find ‘animal latte art’ aliases ‘pumpkin spot pinch my dog,’ you’ll get photo-first results of what you’re looking for. These results are based connected nan study of billions of photos shared by nan Google Maps organization — each done pinch AI and precocious image nickname models. With this ocular database of places, you tin observe caller spots that lucifer precisely what you’re looking for. Just scroll done nan results, pat connected a photograph to study more, and navigate correct there.” Users successful France, Germany, Japan, nan U.K., and nan U.S. tin effort nan caller Google Maps hunt characteristic starting this week.

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Trevor Mogg

Not truthful galore moons ago, Trevor moved from 1 tea-loving land federation that drives connected nan near (Britain) to different (Japan)…

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