Driving app Waze builds its own Siri for hands-free voice control

In an effort to cut driving distractions even further, the crowdsourced driving app Waze today has added the ability for fully hands-free voice control to report traffic situations — bringing Siri-like functionality to the free app before Apple has released its own Siri API.

Waze’s solution is actually more advanced than Siri in one key way: you don’t need to awkwardly hold down any buttons to activate voice commands. Instead, Waze’s voice controls are activated … Continue Reading

Waze’s crowdsourced driving data heads to local news, now 9M users strong

Thanks to its popular crowdsourced navigation app, Waze is sitting on a pile of valuable traffic data. Today the company announced an intriguing use for that data goldmine: powering your local TV station’s traffic reports.

Waze is launching a program to let any broadcast network take advantage of its citizen traffic data, which gives networks access to instant updates about traffic conditions. The company has partnered with 12 launch stations, which have been featuring Waze’s … Continue Reading

Waze raises $30M for its crowdsourced driving app, hits 7M users

There’s no stopping Waze, the crowdsourced app that offers free GPS navigation. The company announced today that it has raised another $30 million in growth funding, led by Horizon Ventures and Kleiner Perkins Caufield & Byers.

Waze also confirmed that it has topped over 7 million users, thanks to its aggressive global expansion.

The news comes on the heels of Waze’s recently launched 3.0 version, which boasts a revamped design, search integration, and more. The … Continue Reading

Navigation app Waze helps arm LA drivers against “Carmageddon”

Waze, a mobile traffic and navigation app, is giving Los Angeles commuters a new weapon in the battle against bumper-to-bumper traffic.

Doomsday scenarios have been all the rage this year, but one is actually going to happen: Carmageddon — the complete shutdown of the 405 freeway in Los Angeles, starting at 7pm on July 15. During this horrific event, 10 miles of northbound 405 and four miles of southbound 405 will be closed for construction … Continue Reading

iOS legal disclaimer hints Apple is working on Maps improvements

The map rumor mill is spinning.

Some digging done today by Arnold Kim at MacRumors.com into Apple’s legal disclaimer for iOS 5 reveals licenses from third-party companies that provide mapping data and services. Could this be evidence that Apple is working on its own mapping solution, despite a renewed partnership with Google Maps?

Apple hasn’t publicly announced any major developments for iOS’s Maps app, but Kim reports that while Apple is obviously developing it’s own … Continue Reading