According to CNBC, Google plans to sell application programming interface (API) access to information on solar energy and air quality. This plan is expected to bring in revenue of 100 million USD in the first year.
The tech giant is planning to license renewable energy companies to use map data. The data from the Solar API comes from the Project Sunroof pilot program launched in 2017. The tool uses satellite imagery calculates solar energy consumption from user data, and provides a 3D model. roofs of nearby buildings and trees based on Google Maps.
Google is holding data on more than 350 million buildings, up from 60 million in 2017. According to CNBC, the company wants to sell API access to individual building data and aggregate data for all of them. all buildings in a particular city or region.
Google also plans to launch an Air Quality API to provide customers with air quality data and make health recommendations based on specific locations. In addition, the Air Quality API provides heat maps, hourly air quality information, and a 30-day air quality history.
In the context of the economic downturn, Google is making an effort to invest in new technology such as artificial intelligence ( AI ) that is generative or sustainable like APIs. Currently, the company licenses the Google Maps API for companies like Uber to use in its navigation system.
In 2021, Morgan Stanley analyst Brian Nowak says, Google Maps is one of Google’s most profitable products ever. Stanley estimates Google Maps will make $11.1 billion by 2023 from advertising and travel revenue.