Ride hailing company Uber is planning to spend $500 million on a global mapping project in an effort to reduce its reliance on Google Maps, according to The Financial Times.

The San Fransisco-based company already has mapping vehicles recording geographical data around the U.S. and Mexico. With Uber's presence in over 60 countries, the significant expansion reflects its continuing growth and adds to its existing investment in original research like driverless cars.

uber_ios_trip_history
Last year, it hired world-leading digital mapping expert Brian McClendon, who previously ran Google Maps and was one of the creators of Google Earth.

McClendon will be responsible for the mapping project, and recently commented on the plans in a blog post without mentioning the $500 million figure:

The ongoing need for maps tailored to the Uber experience is why we're doubling down on our investment in mapping. Our efforts are similar to what other companies including Apple and TomTom are already doing around the world.

The street imagery captured by our mapping cars will help us improve core elements of the Uber experience, like ideal pick-up and drop-off points and the best routes for riders and drivers.

Address data in Google Maps is typically less accurate in developing countries, resulting in some Uber drivers having to call passengers to ask for their location before a pick-up. Uber hopes to nix these problems and feed the traffic pattern and location data already gathered by its cars into its own mapping system, thereby also avoiding charges for using Google Maps.

News of Uber's multi-million-dollar mapping investment was partially eclipsed by reports over the weekend that Chinese ride-hailing service Didi Chuxing is to acquire its Chinese operations in a $35 billion deal.

Apple's own $1 billion investment in Didi Chuxing back in May gave the Cupertino company access to data and expertise on electric and autonomous car technology, which is likely to help with its own car-related project, dubbed Project Titan, now led by veteran Apple executive Bob Mansfield.

Top Rated Comments

djcerla Avatar
113 months ago
Why does every company feel the need to reinvent the wheel? Especially when it's to the tune of $500 million dollars. Just partner up with Google, folks. Everybody wins.
Google is an arrogant company. Using their maps is toxic for any company in the long run, as it puts their destiny in Google's hands.

Apple was forced to build their maps from scratch as Google tried to exploit the advantage limiting turn by turn directions to their own Android OS.

The move has proved catastrophic for Google, with iOS usage dropping from 100% to 20%. We're talking about the crème of the crème of mobile users, lost in a fell swoop.

As long as a company has the huge resources needed, they will build their own maps from scratch.

EDIT: clarity
Score: 4 Votes (Like | Disagree)
Gasu E. Avatar
113 months ago
Why does every company feel the need to reinvent the wheel? Especially when it's to the tune of $500 million dollars. Just partner up with Google, folks. Everybody wins.
I use Uber quite a bit, and have mixed results on drivers being able to locate me. If I'm waiting at my home, or at an office building or restaurant, where the building entrance is reasonably specified by the address, then no problem. However, for large irregular structure with many access points, such as train stations, then it's a big problem; especially for a taxi service. I have been left standing helplessly watching the Uber map while drivers made huge circles around my location, following Google directions mindlessly to the "official address location", rather than to the actual drop-off/pickup locations.

If Uber's strategy is to move to driverless cars, then Google's maps in the current form are grossly inadequate. It's Uber's call whether they can rely on Google to address these deficiencies.
[doublepost=1470142218][/doublepost]
OpenStreetMap!

Why is everyone wasting money on yet another map of the same world. Where I live, OSM already beats everything in accuracy and data depth, thanks to local people that actually just go and fix problems.

Give them some money and equipment to spread into the rest of the world and this becomes a permanently solved problem!
I don't know about OSM, but if it's "open", it's going to be oriented toward human drivers. Uber needs a navigation map that meets the specific needs of robot drivers. If a contributor is allowed to put in an incorrect direction without verification, that's going to be a disaster for a robot.
Score: 3 Votes (Like | Disagree)
Solomani Avatar
113 months ago
"….reduce its reliance on Google Maps" ……. oh this sounds deja vu, doesn't it?
Score: 2 Votes (Like | Disagree)
Zirel Avatar
113 months ago
"….reduce its reliance on Google Maps" ……. oh this sounds deja vu, doesn't it?
Anybody that can is "reducing their reliance on Google Maps", Apple at the center of the spotlight, because Google didn't allow Apple to have turn-by-turn so they could push Android, Apple had to create Apple Maps. A great deal of why Windows Phone failed was also because Google barred Google Maps from Windows Phone, and Microsoft didn't have a trusted competitor.

Dealing with Google is disgustingly, and the perception of Google by the general public ("why didn't Apple keep using Google Maps and didn't create their own" they said) is twisted. Better start early.
Score: 1 Votes (Like | Disagree)
Karma*Police Avatar
113 months ago
Why does every company feel the need to reinvent the wheel? Especially when it's to the tune of $500 million dollars. Just partner up with Google, folks. Everybody wins.
You mean like when Google withheld turn by turn from Apple? No, no, power corrupts. Besides, at the rate Apple maps is progressing, whatever advantage Google has will be wiped out in 2-3 years IMO... in some respects Apple maps is already better and it will get a big jolt next year when Apple opens up its maps R&D center in India with 4,000 engineers focused on maps. Competition is doing its job.

That said, I'm sure they can all work together in some areas to reduce waste and redundancy... perhaps adopting and building upon Google's API's which can be used by governments and businesses to update street, transit and other vital info for all map makers.
Score: 1 Votes (Like | Disagree)
freediverx Avatar
113 months ago
Apple was forced to build their maps from scratch as Google tried to exploit the advantage limiting turn by turn directions to their own Android OS. The move has proved catastrophic, with iOS usage dropping from 100% to 20%.
The "catastrophe" was short-lived and limited to bad PR. Apple never lost a dime in iPhone sales due to the switch from Google Maps data. Apple does not monetize their Map app, so there is no direct negative consequence to Apple if some users choose a competing app. In recent years, the consensus is that Apple has caught up with Google on mapping - at least in the US - and has surpassed them in some cases in terms of accuracy and usability.
Score: 1 Votes (Like | Disagree)

Popular Stories

iPhone 17 Pro 34ths Perspective

iPhone 17 Pro Launching Later This Year With These 10 New Features

Sunday March 23, 2025 10:00 am PDT by
While the iPhone 17 Pro and iPhone 17 Pro Max are not expected to launch until September, there are already plenty of rumors about the devices. Below, we recap key changes rumored for the iPhone 17 Pro models as of March 2025: Aluminum frame: iPhone 17 Pro models are rumored to have an aluminum frame, whereas the iPhone 15 Pro and iPhone 16 Pro models have a titanium frame, and the iPhone ...
iOS 18

iOS 18.4 Expected Next Week - Here Are the Release Notes

Friday March 28, 2025 2:01 pm PDT by
With the second release candidate of iOS 18.4 that Apple seeded out today, the company finally provided us with release notes that give a full rundown on what to expect. There's an Apple Vision Pro app, new Apple Intelligence features for notifications and additional language support, plus an Apple News Food feature for Apple News+ subscribers, and several updates that should improve the...
Magic Mouse Green

What to Expect From the Magic Mouse 3

Saturday March 29, 2025 10:15 am PDT by
Apple is reportedly working on a new Magic Mouse. Below, we recap what to expect. The two key rumors for the Magic Mouse 3 so far include a relocated charging port, along with a more ergonomic design. It was briefly rumored that the Magic Mouse 3 would also feature voice control, but that was misinterpreted information. Relocated Charging Port While the Magic Mouse switched from...
Foldable iPhone 2023 Feature Homescreen

Six Things to Know About Apple's Upcoming Foldable iPhone

Friday March 28, 2025 3:54 pm PDT by
We've been hearing rumors about a foldable iPhone for almost a decade now, but it looks like we might finally see the device come to fruition in 2026. We're going to be waiting many more months for the foldable iPhone, but so far we're hearing good things. Apple wants to make it creaseless. It's taken Apple multiple years to design a foldable iPhone that it's satisfied with because Apple ...
top stories 2025 03 29

Top Stories: WWDC 2025 Announced, iPhone 17 Pro and iOS 19 Rumors, and More

Saturday March 29, 2025 6:00 am PDT by
Apple's big developer event is a little over two months away, and rumors about what we can expect to see in Apple's next major operating system updates are becoming increasingly frequent. A public release of iOS 18.4 is also imminent with a number of updates and improvements, although we won't be getting the major Apple Intelligence Siri upgrades that had reportedly been planned for this...
iOS 19 visionOS UI Elements

Apple Codename Provides Clue About iOS 19's Rumored New Design

Sunday March 30, 2025 6:40 am PDT by
Multiple sources have claimed that iOS 19 will introduce a new design with more translucent buttons, menus, notification banners, and more, and there is now another clue that points towards this glass-like appearance. Bloomberg's Mark Gurman today said the new design project is codenamed "Solarium" internally. A solarium is a room with glass walls that allow in plenty of sunlight, so this...
Facebook Feature

Facebook's New iPhone App Feature Turns the Clock Back to 2007

Thursday March 27, 2025 1:59 pm PDT by
In the mid-to-late 2000s, Facebook was all about staying connected with friends and family. However, as the social media platform added new features and grew over time, that core experience began to get drowned out. That changes starting now, according to Meta, which today introduced a new feature that will "bring back the joy" of classic Facebook. Specifically, Meta has redesigned the...
Foldable iPhone 2023 Feature Homescreen

iPhone Foldable Display Said to Feature iPad-Style 4:3 Aspect Ratio

Friday March 28, 2025 3:44 am PDT by
Apple's upcoming "iPhone Fold" will feature a foldable screen with a 4:3 aspect ratio, according to a Chinese leaker who previously leaked the book-style device's display dimensions. The Weibo-based account Digital Chat Station claims that Apple will adopt a "roughly" 4:3 aspect ratio on the inner display in order to achieve consistency between the outer display, as well as to ensure parity...