At the Google I/O event in May 2022, Google announced that it will bring an AI and AR-powered feature called Immersive View to Google Maps. Using the feature, users could view cities in a birds-eye view, similar to Apple Maps' Flyover feature. At the Search AI event in Paris, Google announced that Google Maps' Immersive View feature is going live in five cities worldwide.
These five cities include London, Los Angeles, New York, San Francisco, and Tokyo. Google Maps users in these cities can take a deep dive into the feature and explore the interior of stores and restaurants without needing to actually pay a visit. Immersive View brings the best of Street View and aerial imagery together and bundles them into an AR feature.
Google Maps will also offer better info about EV charging stations
Apart from virtually visiting the area, you can also view the general information you expect from Google Maps, such as traffic conditions, other restaurants in the area, weather, and time of day, in real-time with NeRF technology (Neural Radiance Fields). It is an AI technique that takes 2D shots of a place from multiple angles and combines them to create a 3D representation of the scene. Google has also iterated that the Immersive View feature is coming soon to Amsterdam, Dublin, Florence, and Venice.
Google has also announced some new updates about the Maps' Live View AR feature. The Google Maps Live View AR feature will be available in Barcelona, Dublin, and Madrid. Moreover, the Indoor Street View is also getting a big upgrade. It will be available in more than 1,000 new airports, train stations, and malls in Barcelona Berlin, Frankfurt, London, Madrid, Melbourne, Paris, Prague, Sao Paulo, Singapore, Sydney, and Taipei in the next few months.
Google said that a new Maps feature called Glanceable Directions will improve and enhance lock screen directions. Users can get more information about the directions without needing to unlock the phone. The feature will be available on Android and iOS in the coming months.
Finally, EV owners will get better information about charging stations. Google Maps will now help calculate the best charging station in the route and will also show you if the place you are visiting has EV charging stations or not.
