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Google Maps Announces New AI-Powered Features
- Written by Kiara Fabbri Former Tech News Writer
- Fact-Checked by Sarah Frazier Former Content Manager
In a Rush? Here are the Quick Facts!
- Google Maps adds AI-powered suggestions using its Gemini model for tailored recommendations.
- Users can ask Maps for activities with friends, like speakeasies or live music.
- New navigation features show landmarks, dining spots, and clearer lane markings.
Google has announced a series of updates to its Maps application, leveraging its generative AI model, Gemini, to enhance user experience. The new features, rolling out this week for users in the United States, aim to streamline the process of discovering and navigating places.
One of the primary updates includes the ability for users to receive tailored suggestions by simply querying the application. For example, if someone is seeking activities to enjoy with friends, they can ask Google Maps for “things to do with friends at night” and receive curated recommendations.
This functionality is powered by Gemini’s summarization and reasoning capabilities, which analyze data from over 250 million locations and insights from the Maps community. Additionally, users can access summarized reviews, offering a quick overview of popular attractions.
The updates also focus on improving navigation. Users can now explore potential stops along their route before embarking on their journey, with features that highlight landmarks, attractions, and dining options.
Enhanced navigation capabilities will provide clearer visual cues, such as lane markings and road signs, making it easier for drivers to navigate complex intersections. To further assist drivers, the application will now enable users to report and view weather-related disruptions along their routes, ensuring better preparedness during travel.
Upon arrival, Google Maps will guide users to their destinations by illuminating building entrances and displaying nearby parking options. This includes reminders to save parking locations and walking directions from the vehicle to the entrance, utilizing features like Street View and augmented reality.
In addition to these updates, Google plans to expand its Immersive View feature to 150 cities globally, allowing users to visualize locations and assess conditions like traffic and weather before planning their visits.
image by Matheus Bertelli, from Pexels
OpenAI Introduces Web Search Feature In ChatGPT
- Written by Kiara Fabbri Former Tech News Writer
- Fact-Checked by Sarah Frazier Former Content Manager
In a Rush? Here are the Quick Facts!
- OpenAI launched a web search feature in ChatGPT for real-time information.
- ChatGPT can search online based on user queries or manual input.
- OpenAI partnered with news providers to include current information and sources.
OpenAI has announced a new feature in ChatGPT that lets users search the web for real-time information. This tool allows ChatGPT to determine when to perform a web search based on the user’s queries, alternatively, users can choose to initiate a search manually by clicking an icon.
The company introduced a separate web search prototype in July, and those features are now integrated directly into the chatbot.
This new search feature is available for ChatGPT Plus and Team users, as well as those on the SearchGPT waitlist. Enterprise and educational users will get access in the next few weeks, and free users will be able to use it in the coming months.
Users can ask questions in a conversational style, and ChatGPT can enhance its responses by retrieving information from the web. Follow-up questions allow the AI to consider the entire context of the discussion for more tailored answers.
OpenAI has teamed up with various news and data providers, like the Associated Press and Reuters, to provide current information in various categories. The feature also includes links to sources, allowing users to check out more details related to their questions.
This search tool is built on a refined version of GPT-4o , using advanced techniques to improve its capabilities. OpenAI plans to keep enhancing the search experience, especially in areas like shopping and travel.
As of now, ChatGPT can remember things about users for later. It does this automatically at times or can be prompted to do so. The new search tool doesn’t have memory capabilities yet, meaning each search starts fresh.
However, Adam Fry, OpenAI’s product lead for search, stated that this feature should be available in the next few quarters, enabling OpenAI to provide more personalized results based on what it knows, as reported by MIT Technology Review .
This launch is happening as tech giants ramp up their AI search efforts. Meta is reportedly working on its own AI search solution, while Google has recently expanded its AI overview feature to over 100 countries, as pointed out by The Verge .
