Google Maps’ live lane guidance feature is coming first to Polestar 4 in the U.S. and Sweden. Google Maps is rolling out live lane guidance for drivers of the Google-powered Polestar 4 electric car. The company announced Tuesday that the new feature relies on the front-facing camera of the vehicle to “see” lane markings and road signs. That information is fed into Google Maps’ artificial intelligence, which provides the driver with personalized audio and visual lane change instructions in real time.
See also: Electrify America: Real-time charger data on Google Maps
Google gives an example of how this might work. Let’s say you’re driving in the left lane on a U.S. highway and your exit is ahead on the right. “With live lane guidance, just glance at your dashboard display to see exactly which lane you might be in at any given time,” Google says in a blog post. The live lane guidance feature in Maps can detect that you’re several lanes to the left of your exit and remind you to change lanes in time.
See also: T-Mobile: T-Satellite satellite service supports Google Maps, WhatsApp, X
Polestar vehicles use Google's built-in Android to power their infotainment system. As a result, Google has integrated other products into Polestar cars over the past five years, such as Google Chrome and high-resolution maps.
“Live lane guidance continues the path of Polestar’s driver-focused UX strategy, reducing driver stress and improving safety by making missed exits and last-minute lane changes much less of a concern,” said Polestar’s Head of UX/UI, Sid Odedra.
See also: Google Maps makes it difficult to control music while navigating
The new feature in Maps will sit alongside standard features like live traffic alerts and estimated driving times. For now, live lane guidance is only available on Polestar 4 cars with Google built-in and only in the US and Sweden, but the company says it plans to expand it to more cars as it works with other automakers. The company also says it plans to add more road types beyond highways.
