Google Maps gets its biggest navigation redesign in a decade, plus more AI

Google Maps is one of the company’s core products, which means it hasn’t escaped the shift to Gemini. There will be more opportunities to converse with a robot in Google Maps starting today, but there’s also a new navigation experience on the way. The revamped navigation isn’t as explicitly focused on the AI revolution, but Google stresses Gemini is still key to making it work.

The latest AI shift in Maps is called Ask Maps, and you can probably guess what it does just from its title. Ask Maps is a Gemini-powered conversational system that can plan trips and answer complex questions about locations across the app’s millions of cataloged points of interest.

The new chatbot will be accessible via a button up near the search bar. You can ask it anything you’re likely to find in Google Maps without jumping into another app. You can ask for directions, of course, but it can also plan out road trips and vacations from a single prompt. Ask Maps works like a chatbot, so it accepts follow-up prompts to refine and expand on its suggestions.

Google says Ask Maps accounts for your personal preferences using the data you already have in Maps. For example, it can factor in the route preferences you’ve set and the locations you’ve searched for or saved in lists. Since this is a mapping application, all the outputs make it easy to get directions or save locations in a list.

Ask Maps is rolling out starting today in the US and India, but only in the Android and iOS apps. It will come to the web version of Maps later.

Google is also promising a “complete transformation” of the navigation experience in Maps, with the biggest update in more than a decade. It’s called Immersive Navigation, and it will begin its rollout today.

Immersive Navigation has a new 3D view that Google says will more accurately reflect what you’ll see in real life. There’s a Gemini tie-in here because Google can’t develop anything new that doesn’t at least touch on AI anymore. You’ll see accurate overpasses, crosswalks, landmarks, and signage in the new navigation experience, which is all courtesy of Gemini models that glean data from Street View and aerial photography. Google says this is just how it’s building 3D maps now; Gemini isn’t making live changes to your navigation experience.

Google also aims to solve some of the biggest usability issues with turn-by-turn navigation in this update. It can often be hard to know what you have to do after the next turn, and that maneuver can sneak up on you. Immersive Navigation tries to show you more of the route as you drive, using smart zoom and transparent buildings to help you plan ahead. Voice guidance will also reference turns after the next one where appropriate.

Immersive Navigation will keep drivers aware of conditions in a few other ways. First, Google says this system will inform users about the tradeoffs for various route options. For example, a route may take longer, but Maps could let you know that it includes less traffic or avoids tolls so you can choose the right path. As you reach your destination, Immersive Navigation will also help you get your bearings with Street View imagery, building entrances, and parking information.

Google says you can expect to see Immersive Navigation on both Android and iOS phones starting today, but the rollout will take a few months to complete. Availability on Android Auto, CarPlay, and Google Built-in may take a bit longer than phone interfaces.