Google Maps and Earth get AI‑boosted satellite and street view
More changes are coming to Google Maps. Improved satellite images and more Street View photos are being added to the application. For Google Maps users, this means a greater ability to discover new locations and plan trips and excursions more effectively. The changes also apply to Google Earth.
9:48 AM EDT, September 24, 2024
Reports from the website 9to5Google indicate that users will soon see improved satellite and spherical Street View images from new locations. These enhancements also apply to the Google Earth application, where new historical street and satellite images will be available, including, for example, black-and-white photographs of New York from 1938. This allows users to explore selected places in ways they haven't before.
The most intriguing development seems to be improving satellite images in Maps and the Earth application through artificial intelligence and the Cloud Score+ model. This technology should result in sharper photographs by removing previously visible artifacts due to clouds, shadows, or fog.
Crucially, AI "intelligently" removes unwanted shadows without eliminating significant ones that indicate features such as mountain slopes or other terrain breaks. Simultaneously, a substantial update concerns Street View. Fresh images from nearly 80 countries, including France, Switzerland, Spain, and Argentina, are being added to the service.
Theoretically, the changes should already be available and visible to users. However, as is often the case with Google app updates, it's worth being patient. The new photos may be available on the server side, so not everyone will see them simultaneously. Implementation typically takes a few days.
