Google Maps AI Major Update
Alphabet, the parent company of Google, announced its third-quarter earnings on October 29th, stating that the company’s AI investments are “paying off,” with cloud sales soaring to $11.35 billion, a 35% increase compared to the same period last year.
According to Bloomberg, Google CEO Sundar Pichai stated in a conference call with investors after the earnings release that the company has successfully reduced the cost of incorporating AI-generated results into its search engine by over 90% within 18 months, while also doubling the model of its AI chatbot Gemini.
Google’s investment in AI is paying off in its Google Cloud division, which contributed about 15% of the company’s revenue in the third quarter. Bob O’Donnell, president of TECHnalysis Research, a technology market research firm, told Reuters, “Google Cloud can make up for the decline in search engine revenue, which highlights the growing importance of cloud revenue and Google’s continued diversification of its revenue base.”
For a long time, the industry believed that Google failed to seize the early advantage in AI development, and even though it made large-scale investments to catch up with competitors like Microsoft and OpenAI, the results were still limited.
However, Google is now trying to increase its competitiveness in the AI market by integrating AI into existing applications with a large user base. The latest case is Google Maps, which has 2 billion monthly users.
Gemini Makes Maps Smarter – What are the Latest Features?
At the Google I/O Developer Conference in May, Google announced the integration of Gemini into the Google Maps Platform, combined with the Places API. On October 31st, Google announced a series of new features to further utilize Gemini in Google Maps.
Feature 1: Enhanced Open-Ended Search
In the future, Google Maps will have improved capabilities for processing open-ended searches. For example, when users ask Google Maps, “What can I do with friends tonight?”, they will receive suggestions integrated with Gemini, such as going to a bar or attending a concert. Users can also refer to Gemini’s summarized reviews and ask Google Maps for more information about specific locations.
However, this feature is currently only available in the United States and not yet synchronized for Taiwanese users.
Through integrating Gemini, Google Maps can provide suggestions for open-ended searches.
Feature 2: Explore Along Your Route
Before starting a trip, users can click “Add stops” to explore popular landmarks, scenic areas, and restaurants along the route.
Feature 3: Enhanced Navigation
Google Maps will enhance the display of lanes, crossings, and other traffic signs, accurately guiding drivers to the appropriate lane in areas with multiple lanes, intersections, and exits.
This feature will be launched in more than 30 metropolitan areas next month and will gradually expand to more places. Similar to Feature 1, this feature is currently only available in the United States and not yet synchronized for Taiwanese users.
Feature 4: See and Report Weather Disruptions
Users can view or report real-time weather disruptions along the journey, including heavy rain or low visibility.
Feature 5: Updated Arrival Guidance
In addition to guiding users to the destination building and entrance, Google Maps will also display nearby parking lots and provide walking directions from the parking location to the destination. It can even integrate street view or AR walking navigation.
In this latest update of Google Maps, except for the Q&A feature and lane markings of Gemini, which will be launched first in the United States, all other features can be experienced by Taiwanese users simultaneously with global users.
Although Google has reported good earnings in the latest quarter, with OpenAI announcing the launch of ChatGPT search, aiming to challenge Google’s dominance in the search engine market, investors are still concerned about how Google can leverage its existing user base to support the development of AI services.
References:
Bloomberg, Reuters
