Google brings Ask Maps to Malaysia as Gemini-powered assistant expands globally

Google is bringing its AI-powered Ask Maps experience to Malaysia as part of its biggest transformation of Google Maps in more than a decade, expanding the Gemini-powered feature to over 160 new countries and territories.

The rollout will allow users in Malaysia to ask Google Maps more natural, conversational questions about places and routes, tapping into Gemini alongside Google's mapping data to deliver personalised recommendations and real-time information.

According to Google, Ask Maps is designed to help users answer more nuanced questions that go beyond traditional search. Rather than searching for a specific location, users can ask Maps to find a quiet restaurant suitable for conversations, recommend a scenic motorcycle route, or suggest places based on personal preferences.

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The latest update also introduces more personalised responses, the ability for Ask Maps to remember previous conversations, and expanded access to real-time information.

Users can now ask about live traffic disruptions, construction works, transit delays and crowd levels before visiting a destination. A new live transit board also surfaces real-time public transport information, allowing users to view upcoming departures and delays within a conversational interface.

Google is also making it easier for users to contribute updates to Maps through natural language. Rather than manually editing listings, users can submit conversational updates if business hours change or new information becomes available. They can also upload photos, with Google Maps automatically detecting details such as updated operating hours before asking users to confirm the changes. Suggested edits will continue to undergo Google's existing review process before being published.

In addition, users will be able to share recommendations and insider tips about locations through conversational prompts, further building on Google Maps' community-driven knowledge base, which is supported by more than 500 million contributors worldwide.

While the global rollout brings these conversational and real-time capabilities to Malaysia and other newly supported markets, Google said some of Ask Maps' newest agentic features will initially remain exclusive to the US.

These include the ability to order food directly through Ask Maps by finding restaurants along a user's route and automatically adding selected dishes to a shopping cart through partners such as Square, Toast and Uber Eats.

The US rollout also includes AI-powered hotel discovery, allowing users to search for accommodation based on detailed preferences such as location, pricing, amenities and atmosphere. Ask Maps can also recommend nearby events, including concerts and comedy shows, while providing links to purchase tickets. Google said these commerce-focused capabilities will expand to more countries over time.

The latest expansion builds on Google's broader push to strengthen its commerce ecosystem across Southeast Asia. Last month, the tech giant unveiled a suite of new advertising tools at Google Marketing Live Southeast Asia in Singapore, aimed at helping brands tap into the region's growing video shopping and creator-led commerce boom.

The new offerings connect Google's AI-powered Search capabilities with YouTube's creator ecosystem, enabling advertisers to shorten the path from product discovery to purchase while extending the reach of creator content. Among the launches was Commerce Media Suite, which lets brands direct consumers from YouTube advertisements to marketplace checkout pages while using shopping signals, such as products users have searched for or added to their carts, to deliver more relevant ads.

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