Singapore Tourism Board (STB) and Google are expanding their partnership to create more augmented reality (AR) experiences, now available directly on Google Maps for the first time.
The announcement was made at Google I/O 2024, the company’s annual developer conference, held on May 14th.
STB and Google plan to create more AR experiences on Google Maps, including remotely viewing Supertree Grove at Gardens by the Bay with Street View (pictured)
STB is one of two institutions globally to participate in a pilot program to bring immersive AR experiences directly to Google Maps in Singapore later this summer.
The partnership builds on the success of Merli’s Immersive Adventure, an innovative AR tour of six locations around Singapore, launched in January this year through STB’s Visit Singapore travel guide app.
As part of this pilot, STB will continue to use Google’s ARCore and Geospatial Creator to develop new location-based AR experiences. Unlike previously when STB AR experiences were only available in the Travel app, these new AR experiences will soon be fully discoverable and enjoyable within the Google Maps mobile app.
Additionally, STB has also signed up more than a dozen other tourism stakeholders in Singapore to participate in the pilot, who will also develop location-based AR experiences themselves. These stakeholders include retail stores along Singapore’s Orchard Road shopping belt, local historic businesses in Chinatown, and popular museums and tourist attractions.
Together, 30 landmarks will be equipped with AR experiences, creating an immersive journey through Singapore’s top tourist destinations, including Chinatown, Supertree Grove at Gardens by the Bay, and Sentosa Sensoryscape.
This enhancement allows AR content to be viewed remotely through Street View in the Google Maps mobile app, creating a seamless and accessible experience regardless of location. Users near a landmark can also discover his AR content on their mobile device by scanning their surroundings using the map’s lens to overlay the real-world physical environment. It helps visitors who are planning a trip to Singapore or when in Singapore to navigate the island through his AR tour.
STB plans to further increase the number of location-based AR experiences on Google Maps beyond 30, with the goal of making Singapore the world’s first “AR City” on Google Maps.
Eric Lai, group product manager for AR at Google, said: “Through our location-based AR experiences, we are empowering our over 1 billion users to more intuitively discover this iconic city like never before. This is the way we explore the world. This is just the beginning of a journey to rebuild.”
Simon Ang, Director of The Collaboratory at STB, said: “This pilot will greatly benefit local businesses by leveraging AR to tell different stories in the same space and make their content discoverable and accessible on Google Maps.” For consumers, it helps them discover new places of interest and provides a deeper understanding of Singapore’s rich history and culture through interactive storytelling. ”
