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Google Maps just got a major upgrade that could make the world’s most popular navigation app even better.

The navigation app is introducing two big new features that can make its directions more informative and adaptable. 

Google is “fundamentally changing what a map can do” by using Gemini models to make navigation experiences more intuitive and even conversational, says a release from Google’s blog, The Keyword.

Here’s how Google has improved Maps to make it more useful for drivers.

Google Maps’ new Ask Maps feature answers questions

Google is officially introducing Ask Maps, a feature that allows drivers to ask “complex, real-world questions a map could never answer before.” Ask Maps will appear on the Maps app as a button that users can tap to engage in informative conversations.

The Ask Maps feature can do everything from provide recommendations for stops along route to inform drivers about specific amenities offered at their destinations. Using the feature can optimize the travel experience because it cuts out the need for extra research. It also allows Gemini users to ask questions normally reserved for the AI assistant within the Maps app itself.

Results from Ask Maps are personalized based on locations you have saved or on places you’ve search for via the navigation app. Ultimately, this feature can make actions like finding parking, restrooms and attractions near your desired destination easier.

Ask Maps is being rolled out now in the U.S. and India for iOS and Android.

Google Maps’ Immersive Navigation feature transforms the user experience

The Keyword blog calls Immersive Navigation the app’s “biggest transformation of the navigation experience in over a decade.”

This feature creates a “vivid 3D view that reflects the buildings, overpasses, and terrain around you.” It can also highlight crosswalks, lanes, stop signs and traffic lights to make the navigation experience more helpful to drivers.

This feature utilizes Gemini AI models to enhance spatial understanding of your route and the landmarks and potential obstacles along the way.

Immersive Navigation allows Maps users to drive more confidently with a deeper awareness of what they’ll encounter while getting to their destination. It can eliminate instances of second-guessing specific turn-by-turn directions thanks to a more detailed view and perspective.

Maps’ Immersive Navigation feature is currently being rolled out in the U.S. and availability will expand in the coming months.

Why is Google Maps so popular?

Google Maps has become the go-to navigation app for over two billion users a month, says a blog post from The Keyword. It’s popular because the app uses accurate real-time data to provide useful directions whether you’re driving, biking or walking.

Maps also integrates other Google features and services like reviews so users can see information and opinions others are sharing regarding specific locations. Users can do everything from save their parking spot to share their real-time location with friends and family on a drive.

New Maps features like Ask Maps and Immersive Navigation are making the navigation app even more useful for drivers who rely on it daily.

 (Source:newswire.lk)

The Sri Lankan Rupee showed a slight improvement against the US Dollar in today’s trading (18), based on the latest figures released by the Central Bank of Sri Lanka.

The dollar’s buying rate decreased from Rs. 307.73 to Rs. 307.54, while the selling rate also edged down from Rs. 315.30 to Rs. 315.07.

In addition to gains against the US Dollar, the local currency also recorded appreciation against a range of other foreign currencies, including those from Gulf countries.

Pokémon Company International has condemned the White House’s use of its imagery, including a tiny version of the popular character Pikachu, in a meme posted online with the phrase “Make America Great Again”.

“We were not involved in its creation or distribution, and no permission was granted for the use of our intellectual property,” said Pokémon spokeswoman Sravanthi Dev. “Our mission is to bring the world together, and that mission is not affiliated with any political viewpoint or agenda.”

The company has previously criticised the Trump administration for using its imagery to promote its deportation drive.

When contacted by the BBC, the White House suggested the company has a political bias.

The company did not say if it intended to pursue a lawsuit against the US government.

The 30 year-old brand, which recently released the game Pokopia for Nintendo, had similarly rebuked President Donald Trump’s administration in September for using its theme song, and slogan “Gotta catch ‘em all”, in a video showing arrests made by US border patrol and immigration agents.

At the time, it also said it was not involved in the creation or distribution of the content and had not granted permission to use its intellectual property.

The latest meme appears to use an image from Pokopia, with the slogan written in a similar font to the game. A small version of Pikachu pops out from behind the letter “e” in “make”.

Asked about Pokémon’s statement, the White House directed the BBC to a post on X by spokesman Kaelan Dorr.

The post includes a photo of a 10 year-old Wall Street Journal article on Trump’s 2016 Democratic rival in the presidential election, Hillary Clinton, referring to the game Pokémon Go to encourage supporters to vote. Clinton had said: “I’m trying to figure out how we get them to have Pokémon go to the polls”.

“Hey Mr Pikachu, big fan. Question for you - why no response to articles like this?” Dorr posted.

“Seems kinda like you ARE maybe affiliated with a political viewpoint, no?”

In Trump’s second term, the administration has frequently used popular memes on official government social media accounts.

White House Spokeswoman Abigail Jackson previously described the strategy, saying: “Through engaging posts and banger memes, we are successfully communicating the president’s extremely popular agenda.”

Most recently, the White House posted a video that mixed images from the war against Iran with clips from the video game franchise Call of Duty.

Numerous artists have complained about their content being used by the Trump administration on social media.

Comedian and podcaster Theo Von, who has previously interviewed Trump on his programme and says he supports him politically, reacted angrily last year when the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) used a clip of him speaking to reveal the agency’s deportation numbers.

“Yooo DHS i didnt approve to be used in this,” Von wrote on X.

“I know you know my address so send a check. And please take this down and please keep me out of your ‘banger’ deportation videos.”

Source:adaderana.lk

A fatal road accident in Weerawila has claimed the lives of at least four individuals after two buses collided head-on along the Ambalantota–Kataragama road, police confirmed.

The crash involved two buses operated by the Sri Lanka Transport Board, leaving approximately 40 passengers injured. Authorities stated that the wounded are currently being transported to nearby hospitals for medical treatment.

Preliminary information indicates that a bus traveling from Colombo to Kataragama collided with another SLTB bus en route from Tissamaharama to Karapitiya.

Police have launched further investigations to determine the cause of the accident.

Instagram will discontinue support for end-to-end encrypted messaging on its platform starting May 8, 2026, the company confirmed.

The change means users will no longer be able to use chats protected by end-to-end encryption, which secures messages with a special key to reduce the risk of external interception.

Meta announced the update through a notice on the Instagram website and advised users to download any messages or media they wish to keep before the feature is removed.

“End-to-end encrypted messaging on Instagram will no longer be supported after 8 May 2026. If you have chats that are affected by this change, you will see instructions on how you can download any media or messages that you may want to keep,” the notice said.

The company also noted that users on older versions of the app may need to update Instagram before downloading affected chats. 

(Source:Newswire)

Naval escorts will not guarantee safe passage for oil tankers through the Strait of Hormuz and could even present a target for Iran as it attempts to leverage control of the vital shipping lane, the head of the International Maritime Organisation (IMO) has warned.

Speaking at the start of a two-day emergency meeting of the UN maritime agency’s governing council in London, secretary-general Arsenio Dominguez told Sky News “de-escalation” was the only sustainable way to restore the flow of shipping.

The Strait of Hormuz - in normal circumstances the conduit for a fifth of global oil demand - has effectively been closed for more than two weeks since the US-Israeli offensive against Iran.

Tehran responded to the assault by attacking tankers and other energy infrastructure, paralysing traffic and triggering a price shock on global energy markets.

‘Not a long-term solution’

US President Donald Trump has called on allies including the UK to provide naval support for tankers to reopen the shipping lane, but Mr Dominguez warned that would not be enough to restore the flow of oil, cargo, fertilisers and food to and from the Gulf.

“The reality is that a ship can still be targeted even with an escort vessel next to it, and it doesn’t really provide the guarantees, not even on insurance or to the seafarers, that trade can continue to come back. It’s not a long-term sustainable solution,” he said.

Asked if he was concerned that a naval convoy could present a target, he replied “absolutely” and said it was unlikely that traffic would resume without a formal ceasefire.

“I can’t see that because it’s too risky, and I will not be calling on anyone to take the risk to send innocent ships and innocent seafarers in particular through the Strait of Hormuz when there are no guarantees from all the parties involved that it is safe to do so.

“We need to de-escalate the situation. It’s the only solution. And this is why we meet here at IMO. We actually believe and trust multilateralism and dialogues. And that’s how we find solutions.”

‘Cowardly’ attacks threaten industry

The emergency meeting was called by members of the IMO’s 40-strong council, which includes the UK and the US, as well as Gulf states that have faced retaliation from Iran, Saudi Arabia, the UAE and Qatar.

Representatives of Iran and Israel will be present as observers at the meeting in London, which takes place at the IMO’s headquarters on the south bank of the Thames opposite the Palace of Westminster.

Describing the Iranian attacks on shipping as “cowardly”, Mr Dominguez said that commercial vessels and their crews had been put at unacceptable risk.

“Shipping should have never been put in this situation. Those are very cowardly attacks on a sector that doesn’t take part in these geopolitical conflicts,” Mr Dominguez said.

“The reality is that everybody’s affected, not just the countries in the region.”

(Source:adaderana.lk)

FAO Representative for Sri Lanka and the Maldives Vimlendra Sharan (left), Secretary to the Ministry of Environment K.R. Uduwawala at the signing ceremony along with representatives of the FAO and officials of the Ministry of Environment  

Key interventions include updating the national priority invasive species list for the first time since 2015, establishing a national digital monitoring system, and enhancing border controls through improved tools and enforcement capacity

Positioning the country among the first globally to move into large-scale implementation of bio diversity conservation, Sri Lanka has been endorsed for a project under the Kunming Biodiversity Fund (KBF) of the Kunming-Montreal Global Biodiversity Framework. 

The KBF project proposal was formally signed by the Secretary to the Ministry of Environment K.R. Uduwawala, and FAO Representative for Sri Lanka and the Maldives Vimlendra Sharan, at the Ministry of Environment recently. 

The Fund provides catalytic international financing that enables Sri Lanka to scale up biodiversity action, address long-standing investment gaps in invasive species management, and leverage FAO’s technical support. Community-based ecosystem restoration and inclusive livelihoods are central to the project’s approach. Activities will include site-specific eradication efforts, post-eradication monitoring, and innovative ‘eradication-through-utilisation’ models that generate economic opportunities for women, youth and vulnerable groups while restoring ecosystems.

Through the project Sri Lanka will strengthen policies, legislation and institutional coordination related to invasive species management. Key interventions include updating the national priority invasive species list for the first time since 2015, establishing a national digital monitoring system, and enhancing border controls through improved tools and enforcement capacity.

The KBF-supported project responds directly as an urgent, coordinated and system-wide national action in managing the invasive alien species that represent a critical and growing threat to Sri Lanka’s biodiversity, ecosystems, agriculture and livelihoods. The proposal is entirely homegrown, developed through close collaboration between the Ministry of Environment and national experts, ensuring that global commitments are firmly grounded in Sri Lanka’s national priorities and realities.

This marks a transformative shift from fragmented, project-based interventions to a unified national bio-security system. The initiative will institutionalise prevention, early detection, rapid response and long-term management of invasive species across the country. 

The Ceylon Petroleum Corporation has announced the implementation of an odd–even fuel distribution system, which will come into effect from tomorrow (19).

According to the CPC Chairman, fuel sales will be managed through a rotation based on vehicle registration numbers to ensure an orderly distribution process.

Under the new arrangement, vehicles bearing registration numbers ending in zero or any even digit will be permitted to obtain fuel on dates that fall on even numbers. Meanwhile, vehicles with number plates ending in odd digits will be allowed to refuel only on odd-numbered dates.

The system is expected to help manage fuel demand and streamline distribution across the country.

Esmaeil Khatib, Iran’s Intelligence Minister, has reportedly been killed in an overnight strike, according to Israel Katz.

Katz stated that Khatib was “eliminated” during the operation, although no official confirmation has been issued by Iran regarding his death.

The Israeli defence minister further noted that he, along with Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, has authorised the military to proceed with operations targeting other senior Iranian officials without requiring additional approval.

The reported killing comes amid a series of high-profile deaths within Iran’s leadership. Tehran has already confirmed the deaths of key figures, including national security chief Ali Larijani and the head of the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps Basij paramilitary wing.

Khatib was also among several officials recently identified by the United States Government, which had offered a reward of up to $10 million for information on individuals linked to the IRGC. The list included 10 officials, among them Larijani and Iran’s newly named supreme leader, Mojtaba Khamenei.

The situation continues to unfold as tensions remain high in the region.

Two people have been killed during an Iranian missile attack that struck “several” sites around Tel Aviv, local police said.

An emergency responder for Israel’s Magen David Adom (MDA) ambulance service has told AFP news agency they saw “smoke rising” from a building and “extensive damage and shattered glass”.

“We saw two unconscious casualties, with no pulse and not breathing, with severe injuries to their bodies,” they added.

Medics later confirmed the deaths of a man and a woman “with severe shrapnel injuries” in Ramat Gan east of Tel Aviv.

In the area of Bnei Brak, MDA teams also treated a man in “mild condition with shrapnel injuries to his hand” who was later sent to hospital.

Source: adaderana.lk

Litro Gas Lanka Limited has confirmed that Sri Lanka will continue to receive steady gas supplies, with vessels scheduled to arrive at regular three-day intervals.

Company officials stated that current reserves are sufficient to meet local demand until the end of April. These supplies are being supported by storage facilities located in Maldives.

A shipment carrying 88,000 metric tons of gas from the United States is expected to reach the Maldives tomorrow. In addition, another vessel with the same capacity is scheduled to arrive on April 20.

The company emphasized that all necessary steps are being taken to maintain a stable supply chain and ensure uninterrupted availability of gas across the country.

A drone attack targeted the U.S. embassy in Baghdad and an explosion was heard in the area, security sources said early on Wednesday, a day after a series of ⁠strikes.

Security sources had said on Tuesday that rocket and drone attacks had targeted the embassy, triggering sirens with an explosion heard near the diplomatic compound.

At least three explosive drones also targeted a ⁠U.S. diplomatic facility near Baghdad International Airport, activating C-RAM air defence systems, the sources said on Tuesday.

Tehran-backed ⁠militias have been attacking U.S. interests in Iraq in retaliation for the U.S.-Israeli war on ⁠Iran that began on February 28.

There were no immediate ⁠reports of casualties or damage.

Source:adaderana.lk