Google showed off a host of new AI-powered features and services at its Google I/O event earlier this year in May. Underneath, Google Maps was also promised a range of new AI capabilities, including an impressive Immersive View feature that would provide a panoramic overview of your route. Now ‘Immersive View for routes’ and a few other AI features are finally available as part of a new Maps update, Google has announced. The search engine giant is also bringing Google Lens to Maps, adding more real-word information to navigation.
The new Immersive View for Routes allows users to preview their route step-by-step while driving, walking or cycling. The feature is rolling out this week in select cities including Amsterdam, Barcelona, Dublin, Florence, Las Vegas, London, Los Angeles, Miami, New York, Paris, San Francisco, San Jose, Seattle, Tokyo and Venice on both Android devices. and iOS, Google said in its blog on Thursday.
Immersive View provides a bird’s-eye view of your route from start to finish, with turn-by-turn directions. Users can also plan their trip and decide when to leave based on useful information in Immersive View, such as simulated traffic and weather conditions, via the time slider.
Immersive View provides a detailed panoramic view of your route
Photo credits: Google
Google is also introducing a Lens in Maps feature that will help users understand their surroundings in real time. The feature, previously called Search with Live View, essentially adds Google Lens to Maps’ search bar. With a quick tap on the Lens icon, you can open your camera in Maps and find information about nearby stores, restaurants, or ATMs. The Lens in Maps feature is expanding to more than 50 new cities, including Austin, Las Vegas, Rome, São Paulo and Taipei. Google did not specify whether the Immersive View and Lens features would be coming to India.
Navigation on Google Maps will also improve, bringing more information from the real world, Google said. Navigation now includes updated colors across the map, more realistic buildings along your route, and improved lane details. These updates will be rolled out in 12 countries, including the US, Canada, France and Germany, over the coming months, Google said.
Additionally, EV owners driving cars with Google built-in will now get more useful charging station information, including whether a charger is compatible with their vehicle. This update goes live globally this week on iOS and Android in regions where EV charging station information is available.
Finally, Google is also adding improvements to Search in Google Maps, now giving users more answers to their questions and helping them discover what they can do. The search feature provides photo-first results of what you’re looking for, Google said. “These results are based on the analysis of billions of photos shared by the Google Maps community – all done with AI and advanced image recognition models,” the company added.
