Maps have gotten much better over the past few decades. But they’re still mostly two dimensional, and they struggle to keep up with a world that is always changing. Brian McClendon is the Chief Technology Officer of Niantic Spatial, a spinout of the company that makes Pokémon Go. Brian’s problem is this: How do you build a three-dimensional map of the world that both robots and humans can use to find their way?
In this episode, Brian explains:
- What he learned building Google Earth
- How Pokémon Go players helped build the foundation for robot navigation
- What it will take to teach AI to understand the physical world.
- Why GPS is so bad in cities
- Why trees are such a big problem for digital mapmakers
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