Just over a week ago, Google said that it will be rolling out Gemini Spark in Malaysia. Now, the tech giant announced that the new Ask Maps feature is coming to the country as well. As the name suggests, it is the latest addition to the company Google Maps, which lets users communicate with the app if they are holding a proper conversation.
By now, it should come as no surprise that the Ask Maps feature is powered by the company’s Gemini AI. Besides just communicating with said AI as you would a chatbot, Google says the feature will introduce new agentic capabilities as well as provide real-time information on searches.
Per the official blog, Ask Maps can now carry out “complex, multi-step” tasks with a few words thanks to its agentic capabilities. An example the company provided is that it can help order the user’s meal and have it arranged for the user to pick up along the way. According to the company, the AI will look up restaurants along the user’s route, as well as consider their dietary restrictions, among other things.
Once they’ve selected a restaurant, Ask Maps will add the dish directly to the cart for easy review. Google notes that this is possible because it has partnered with some companies like Square, Toast, and Uber Eats. Beyond food, Google says that Ask Maps can also find and book hotels to the user’s specifications as well as any events nearby.
Outside of agentic capabilities, Google says that the Ask Maps feature can now provide users with “trusted, real-time information instantly”. What makes this possible is that Ask Maps now comes with a “new live transit board that updates automatically”. So, when prompted, the map can deliver all of the transportation options at a glance, which includes live delay alerts. This also extends to driving.route as well.
The last feature Google mentioned is that users can now contribute to the maps. Per the blog, users can suggest edits “conversationally”. All they have to do is tap the “…” icon in Ask Maps and select “update a place” to suggest a change.
Be mindful that the system will review suggested edits for accuracy and will not post suggestions that violate the company’s policies. That said, users can submit photos to strengthen their case. Additionally, Google says that users can share “insider tips” through this method.
As mentioned earlier, Google said that Ask Maps is rolling out everywhere, including Malaysia. However, the blog specifically mentions that the food ordering, discovering hotels and events, as well as conversational contribution features, are still rolling out in the US now. Other countries will get these features at a later date.
(Source: Google [Blog])
