TechScape: My pet theory that Google’s Waze will help drive Starmer to No 10
In this week’s newsletter: Hear me out … but the traffic-dodging app may have started a domino effect that will bring down the Tories
December 2023
Why I quit
Scrawled bits of paper and an A-Z: How I went cold turkey on Google Maps
Ned Vessey
The more I navigated using my phone, the more unsettled I felt. Was it robbing something from me, asks freelance writer Ned Vessey
October 2023
The AI race
Humanity at risk from AI ‘race to the bottom’, says tech expert
MIT professor behind influential letter says unchecked development is allowing a few AI firms to jeopardise society’s future
September 2023
Family sues Google after Maps allegedly directed father off collapsed US bridge
Tech company faces negligence lawsuit after Philip Paxson died from driving off a North Carolina bridge destroyed years ago
April 2023
From Google Maps to Pokémon Go, John Hanke is programming the future
The CEO of Niantic has helped create technologies that have changed the way we live. How does he see the future of play?
May 2022
Google IO: Pixel 6a, Pixel Watch and Android 13 unveiled
New Pro earbuds and upcoming Pixel 7 phones, tablet and software shown off during virtual event
February 2022
Mauritius asks Google to label Chagos Islands as part of its territory
Row breaks out over Google Maps definition as UK insists it still maintains sovereignty
January 2022
Conversations with experts
Should the world map be more realistic? We ask an expert
Italian mafia fugitive arrested in Spain after Google Street View sighting
October 2021
Google Maps to show the lowest carbon route for car journeys
Google’s CEO Sundar Pichai said the initiative could save 1m tonnes of carbon dioxide a year
September 2021
Fuel tax lobbyist blames ‘militant cyclist’ for listing home as petrol station
FairFuelUK’s Howard Cox says he got 70 calls from panic buyers and accuses unknown environmentalist of Google Maps prank
July 2021
Google Maps suggests ‘potentially fatal’ routes up Ben Nevis, say mountain charities
Organisations in Scotland say they have tried to contact Google about the dangers but received no reply
May 2021
My pandemic comfort? Google reviews. They can be as compelling as any TV drama
Louise Benson
The comments aren’t just transactional – they can reveal more about how we connect than the curated feeds of social media, says journalist Louise Benson
December 2020
Google Maps postcode error leads delivery drivers on wild pizza chase
A mix-up on the tech giant’s service has meant three years of frustration for Simon Borghs, and highlights our reliance on the data private companies hold
August 2020
Google Maps gets worldwide visual overhaul
Updated version promises ‘more vibrant’ representation of natural features and built environment
March 2020
The long read
The unlisted: how people without an address are stripped of their basic rights
The long read: Without a street address you have no access to credit or bank accounts, a pension or voting rights. But large parts of the world’s population still live off the map
February 2020
Berlin artist uses 99 phones to trick Google into traffic jam alert
Google Maps diverts road users after mistaking cartload of phones for huge traffic cluster
October 2019
Mayor of Sardinian village blames Google Maps for lost tourists
Rescuers in Baunei called out 144 times in past year to save visitors from impassable roads
July 2019
Newly opened WestConnex tunnel missing from Google Maps, causing confusion in Sydney
Motorists sent up the garden path as controversial M4 East tunnel from Homebush to Haberfield fails to display
April 2019
Would life be happier without Google? I spent a week finding out
People had to get by without the search engine giant before it was launched in 1998. But is it possible to live your life – and do your job – without it these days?
