If you’ve ever wished your navigation app could do more than just guide you from A to B, Google is listening. This week, the company rolled out a significant update to its “Ask Maps” feature—turning it from a conversational search tool into a genuine AI assistant that can handle real-world tasks.
What’s new?
The headline addition is agentic AI – meaning Ask Maps can now perform multi‑step actions on your behalf. For example:
Food ordering: You can say, “Find a Thai place near my route and order pad thai for pickup.” The AI checks your location, past favourites, and restaurant availability, then adds items to your cart via partners like Square, Toast, and soon Uber Eats. You just confirm payment.
Hotel bookings: Ask for “a well‑rated, artsy hotel in downtown Miami within walking distance to gyms and restaurants, for next weekend,” and it will compare prices, check vacancies, and even suggest nearby activities.
Personal memory: With your permission (it’s off by default), Ask Maps can tap into your Gmail and Calendar. It might remind you of a flight and recommend airport dining, or recall your previous trip to Seattle and offer new suggestions based on that history.
Real‑time transit: Live transit boards now show delays and schedules for buses, trains, and ferries.
Edits via chat: You can tell the AI “there’s more parking behind this building” or upload a photo of a new storefront, and it will propose a map edit for you.
Where and when?
These features are live in the US today, while the English version of Ask Maps has expanded to over 150 countries, including Australia, Brazil, Canada, Indonesia, Japan, and Mexico. More regions and languages are on the way.
Why it matters
This isn’t just a gimmick. Google is quietly weaving Gemini into its core products, making Maps the front door for local discovery and errands. The assistant handles the tedious research—you keep the final say. It feels like a natural step toward a future where we talk to our devices like human concierges, not just command lines.
My take
After playing with it, the most impressive part isn’t the ordering—it’s the memory. Having a map that remembers where you ate, what you liked, and even your flight times makes trip planning feel less like work and more like chatting with a knowledgeable friend. Privacy concerns? Google insists all personal data is opt‑in and can be deleted anytime.
If you’re in a supported region, give it a try. Ask Maps something like “Plan a casual dinner and a movie for tonight” – you might be surprised how much it can handle.
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