Google Maps appears to be getting a new feature that will greet users with the capability to help them find food and entertainment and perhaps more when they arrive at an airport in a city they've never visited before. Android Authority discovered this possible new feature when it did a deep dive into version 26.45.00.1011720968 of Google Maps for Android, and found strings of text. The text seems to show that the goal of this new feature is to get a Google Maps user to use the new AI-powered Ask Maps prompt when they arrive at an airport in a city they are not familiar with.
What does Ask Maps do?
Ask Maps allows a Google Maps user to ask a conversational, situation-based question instead of having to type traditional keywords to run a query. Not only can Ask Maps respond to and answer complex questions, it can also plan trip itineraries, make recommendations based on your preferences and reviews, and perform multi-step tasks like ordering food or booking hotel rooms.
When you arrive at an airport in a city that you've never been to before, you are guided to the Ask Maps feature, which will know the name of the city you've landed in based on your phone's GPS and location data.
Your phone will also use Timeline & Location History, Gmail, and Google Calendar integration if enabled, and Gemini Personal Intelligence in an attempt to make sure that you have never been in the city you've landed in before.
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String of text that reveals how this feature might work. | Image by Android Authority
If that's the case, the discovered text strings say that Ask Maps will help you get into town, find you a great first meal, and discover what's happening in the city tonight. This is all driven by location data including a new AirportGeofenceSyncWorker component that runs in the background and knows when your device enters or leaves geofences (virtual boundaries) placed around various airports. Once you cross over the geofence, Google Maps triggers the Ask Maps prompt.
With this feature, you won't have to adjust location filters to improve search results. Just tell Ask Maps what you are looking for in the same conversational manner you'd explain it to a friend, and let Gemini do the hard part.
These are the cities with airports where this new feature could work
This tool, when or if it is eventually launched by Google, could work with airports in the following cities:
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Alan, an ardent smartphone enthusiast and a veteran writer at PhoneArena since 2009, has witnessed and chronicled the transformative years of mobile technology. Owning iconic phones from the original iPhone to the iPhone 15 Pro Max, he has seen smartphones evolve into a global phenomenon. Beyond smartphones, Alan has covered the emergence of tablets, smartwatches, and smart speakers.
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