{"id":800802,"date":"2026-07-15T00:54:13","date_gmt":"2026-07-15T00:54:13","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/800802\/"},"modified":"2026-07-15T00:54:13","modified_gmt":"2026-07-15T00:54:13","slug":"waze-introduces-motorcycle-mode-more-conversational-ai-features","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/800802\/","title":{"rendered":"Waze introduces motorcycle mode, more conversational AI features"},"content":{"rendered":"<p class=\"m7p3v71 _1ivmml5pq _1ivmml52 _1ivmml5d _1ivmml53fc _1ivmml53l6 _1ivmml53zy _1ivmml545s\">Google has updated its\u00a0Waze\u00a0navigation app to include a new mode for motorcyclists, and deeper integration with the search giant&#8217;s Gemini AI assistant.\u00a0<\/p>\n<p class=\"m7p3v71 _1ivmml5pq _1ivmml52 _1ivmml5d _1ivmml53fc _1ivmml53l6 _1ivmml53zy _1ivmml545s\">The new motorcycle mode takes into account narrower streets that can be suitable for motorbikes, but not cars. Its routing algorithm will also factor in road hazards that are more problematic for bike riders, such as potholes, speed humps, and raised pedestrian crossings.<\/p>\n<p class=\"m7p3v71 _1ivmml5pq _1ivmml52 _1ivmml5d _1ivmml53fc _1ivmml53l6 _1ivmml53zy _1ivmml545s\">Unfortunately, we don&#8217;t know when motorcycle mode will be available in Australia, with the feature coming first to Argentina, Brazil, Colombia, Malaysia, Mexico, Peru and the Philippines. Google says &#8220;more countries on the way&#8221;, but hasn&#8217;t laid out a timeline for the rest of the world.<\/p>\n<p class=\"m7p3v71 _1ivmml5pq _1ivmml52 _1ivmml5d _1ivmml53fc _1ivmml53l6 _1ivmml53zy _1ivmml545s\">Looking for your next car? We&#8217;ll help you\u00a0<a href=\"https:\/\/www.carexpert.com.au\/car-reviews?utm_source=carexpert-news&amp;utm_medium=linked-text&amp;utm_campaign=research\" class=\"_87i7r20 _87i7r21\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\">research\u00a0<\/a>and\u00a0<a href=\"https:\/\/www.carexpert.com.au\/compare-cars?utm_source=carexpert-news&amp;utm_medium=linked-text&amp;utm_campaign=compare&amp;_gl=1*18kv7vf*_up*MQ..*_ga*MTQ5NzQ1MDIyNi4xNzc5MjI5OTE2*_ga_4EYEMWDTVH*czE3NzkyMjk5MTYkbzEkZzEkdDE3NzkyMzAxMDQkajYwJGwwJGg0OTMyMTAxMzk.\" class=\"_87i7r20 _87i7r21\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\">compare<\/a>\u00a0so you choose with confidence.<\/p>\n<p><img decoding=\"async\" class=\"_1ivmml51gy _1ivmml51yg _1ivmml514 _1u8h4qz8\" src=\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/07\/waze-app-motorcyle-1.jpg\"  loading=\"lazy\" alt=\"A smartphone displaying the Waze navigation app with motorcycle mode selected, showing a 19-minute best route via Birch Blvd across 16 km\" fetchpriority=\"low\"\/><\/p>\n<p class=\"m7p3v71 _1ivmml5pq _1ivmml52 _1ivmml5d _1ivmml53fc _1ivmml53l6 _1ivmml53zy _1ivmml545s\">As part of the suite of updates there&#8217;s also new, optional personalised navigation, which uses previously taken routes to generate path suggestions, and a new &#8220;less chatty&#8221; setting to minimise the number of voice prompts and their duration so drivers can enjoy their music or podcasts with less interruption.<\/p>\n<p class=\"m7p3v71 _1ivmml5pq _1ivmml52 _1ivmml5d _1ivmml53fc _1ivmml53l6 _1ivmml53zy _1ivmml545s\">As with other Google products, the other Waze changes centre around deeper integration with the company&#8217;s Gemini AI voice assistant. The conversational reporting feature has now been extended from traffic incidents to map updates, such as road closures or an outdated business address.\u00a0<\/p>\n<p class=\"m7p3v71 _1ivmml5pq _1ivmml52 _1ivmml5d _1ivmml53fc _1ivmml53l6 _1ivmml53zy _1ivmml545s\">Gemini can now also be used to help find a destination, such as a &#8220;car park near the Wooloowin train station&#8221;, a &#8220;petrol station with the lowest price in Hornsby&#8221;, or a &#8220;cafe open right now&#8221;. For now, this feature is only available to beta users, and it&#8217;s not clear when it will be ready for general release.<\/p>\n<p><img decoding=\"async\" class=\"_1ivmml51gy _1ivmml51yg _1ivmml514 _1u8h4qz8\" src=\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/07\/waze-app-gemini-ai-1.jpg\"  loading=\"lazy\" alt=\"Two smartphones side by side showing the Waze navigation app, with screens displaying a report feature and voice guidance settings\" fetchpriority=\"low\"\/><\/p>\n<p class=\"m7p3v71 _1ivmml5pq _1ivmml52 _1ivmml5d _1ivmml53fc _1ivmml53l6 _1ivmml53zy _1ivmml545s\">Personalised navigation and the extension of conversational reporting\u00a0are being rolled out globally on both iPhone and Android devices.<\/p>\n<p class=\"m7p3v71 _1ivmml5pq _1ivmml52 _1ivmml5d _1ivmml53fc _1ivmml53l6 _1ivmml53zy _1ivmml545s\">Waze can be used directly on a smartphone, accessed through Apple CarPlay and Android Auto, or via infotainment systems that have access to the Google Play app store.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Google has updated its\u00a0Waze\u00a0navigation app to include a new mode for motorcyclists, and deeper integration with the search&hellip;\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":800803,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[20],"tags":[256,254,255,64,63,105],"class_list":["post-800802","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-artificial-intelligence","tag-ai","tag-artificial-intelligence","tag-artificialintelligence","tag-au","tag-australia","tag-technology"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/800802","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=800802"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/800802\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/800803"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=800802"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=800802"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=800802"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}