Google Maps Adding Indoor AR Navigation, Weather Information, and More

Google announced today that it’s adding over 100 AI-powered improvements to Google Maps throughout the coming year.

A new Google blog post explains that Maps is rolling out a handful of new tools and tweaks, like indoor AR navigation, weather and air quality information, grocery pickup integration, and more.

“Sixteen years ago, many of us held a printout of directions in one hand and the steering wheel in the other to get around, without information about the traffic along your route or details about when your favorite restaurant was open,” Google’s Dane Glasgow writes. “Since then, we’ve been pushing the boundaries of what a map can do, propelled by the latest machine learning…we’re using AI to make Maps work better for you with a number of updates coming this year.”

Google is adding its AR-based Live View feature to indoor locations including airports, transit stations, and malls. It can help you find the nearest elevators and escalators, gate, platform, baggage claim, check-in counters, ticket office, restrooms, ATMs, and more, Google says.

The feature is first rolling out in some malls in Chicago, Long Island, Los Angeles, Newark, San Francisco, San Jose, and Seattle. In the coming months, it will also launch in airports, malls and transit stations in Tokyo and Zurich.

Google is also adding weather features to Maps, allowing users to see current and forecasted temperatures and weather conditions in their area. The app is also adding an air quality feature that gives current information.

Google is also be introducing a new feature where the software will direct drivers to more eco-friendly routes, using directions that produce the lowest amount of carbon emissions. The software will take into account factors such as traffic and slopes.

Read all about the upcoming upgrades over at Google’s blog.