As we enter a new era where developers are building applications with generative AI, Google Maps Platform is introducing grounding with Google Maps, a new capability that allows developers to use our rich place data to build generative AI-powered experiences. Sign up if you would like to become a trusted tester for Gemini in Google Earth.

By combining Google Maps Platform and Oriient's' Indoor Location Services, developers can create navigation solutions that guide users from an outdoor starting point to a specific indoor item. By using Google Maps Platform's Locator Plus and Distance Matrix API to find the destination and calculate travel distance, and Oriient's Indoor GPS and PLAI (Product Location AI) service to find shelved products, going from outside to inside navigation just got easier.

• Libraries in Flutter and React Native are now publicly available

The new Flutter and React Native libraries allow developers to easily use CI/CD pipelines to connect systems to pub.dev and GitHub. Get all the plugins and information you need in our documentation and check out the Flutter and React Native examples. 

• Trigger geofences client-side to track mobile assets

What is geofencing? When  do you use it? What is a road snapped location? And how do you use it all in mobile applications? Check out this tutorial  for how to implement geofences with Nav SDK on Android and iOS.

• Best Practices for Android

In this latest blog post, get the implementation playbook from the Nav SDK team, including navigation notifications and interacting with GoogleMap objects. Everything you love about Google Maps turn-by-turn navigation is ready for you to seamlessly integrate into your Android app. Check out these demos for some inspiration. 

The Places Insights API allows developers to gain insights around a specific location based on what matters most to your users. By leveraging this API, developers can create custom metrics that quantify factors like, “good for visitors” or “foodie-friendly” based on the density of nearby restaurants, parks, shops, and other points of interest that meet a certain search criteria, such as price level or rating. This empowers users to find the perfect spot or easily assess the appeal of different locations. 

This API has wide-ranging applications across industries like retail, real estate, travel, and marketing. Some potential use cases include:

• Create a custom score to help users compare different locations (e.g., family friendly, good for visitors, etc). This metric can also be used to determine which are the most relevant listings to show your user based on their personal preferences

• Show a heatmap of all of the nearby amenities (e.g., heatmap of all of the EV charging stations) 

• Understand the number of places available in an area for market research (e.g., how many delivery restaurants are available in this area)

We’re very excited to hear your feedback about this new API. If you’re interested in testing or giving feedback on your experience with the Places Insights API, please fill out this form to help us shape the future of this product.