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Behind the map
Geospatial World Forum: Three reasons why now's the right time for collaborative mapmaking
Last week, TomTom’s VP of Product for Maps, Willem Strijbosch, took to the stage as part of a panel at Geospatial World Forum to discuss a new, open model for map data and how the Overture Maps Foundation will work to make it a reality. But why do we need a new model for mapmaking and geospatial data? Why do we need the Overture Foundation in the first place?
May 09, 2023·6 mins read
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Behind the map
A map historian explains the Netherlands' important role in mapmaking
In this article, we hand over the keys to the TomTom Newsroom blog to Drs. Reinder Storm who is the Curator Special Collections at The Allard Pierson, a University of Amsterdam affiliated museum that houses a very special collection of historical maps.
May 04, 2023·11 mins read
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Behind the map
SXSW 2023: Making maps and location tech is really hard, but not if we do it together
On March 12, 2023, in Austin, Texas, mapping experts from the likes of Meta, Lyft and TomTom, working at the heart of this industry, gathered on the Industries Expo – Next Stage at SXSW to discuss the future of mapmaking and location-powered tech. If there’s anything we need to take away from this talk it’s that working with maps and location data is hard, whatever part of the industry you operate in. But it doesn’t need to be, if we work together.
Mar 21, 2023·6 mins read
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Behind the map
What shipping containers can teach modern mapmaking
Today, the world of global logistics would be nothing without the shipping container. The simple steel box revolutionized how goods are moved between continents and across oceans. Despite its simplicity, it's one of the most significant inventions ever — it also makes a great metaphor for the state of modern, global digital mapmaking.
Feb 01, 2023·7 mins read
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Behind the map
How TomTom helps ride-hailing users find their way around airports
No matter how much experience we have flying, air travel will always be one of the most stressful means of travel. If clearing security, making it to your connecting flight in time and getting to and from airports weren’t enough, having to successfully locate the ride-hailing pick-up point in a new airport and find the cab you ordered add to the pains of the modern traveler.
Jan 19, 2023·6 mins read
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Behind the map
TomTom, Amazon Web Services, Meta and Microsoft join forces and launch open map data foundation
Amazon Web Services, Meta, Microsoft and TomTom have come together, as founding members, to form the Overture Maps Foundation, an open-data project that aims to build “reliable, easy-to-use and interoperable open map data.” The Overture Foundation is being established under the Linux Foundation, which first shared the news yesterday, and will define a new standard for mapmaking. With this news, TomTom galvanizes the next phase of its plan to build “the smartest map on the planet.”
Dec 16, 2022·9 mins read
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Behind the map
Super sources will power the 'smartest map on the planet.' But what are they?
Earlier this month, TomTom lifted the lid on its game-changing approach to build a new mapping and geolocation data ecosystem, the TomTom Maps Platform. Data will be key to its success, and while the company already has more than 30 years’ worth of global location data, it’s not resting on its laurels. The Dutch mapmaker is instead taking data sourcing to new heights with what it calls “super sources.” But what are they?
Nov 09, 2022·15 mins read
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Behind the map
The world needs a better map: TomTom is making it with its new mapping platform and ecosystem
Today, at its investor meeting, TomTom made one of the most significant announcements in its 30-year history. The geolocation tech specialist and mapmaking company is launching a new map, mapping platform and ecosystem, which the company is collectively calling the TomTom Maps Platform. TomTom says it will set a new standard for mapmaking, one designed to support a future of innovative location-based tech and will lay the foundation for industry-wide open collaboration.
Nov 02, 2022·11 mins read
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Behind the map
Navigation nightmare: How TomTom mapped an airport in three days
It’s that time of the year again: your holiday has arrived. You’re loading bags into the car ready to head to the airport. You’re excited, but you’ve got a flight to catch, and time is ticking. Sandy beaches and hot sun await but hang on – your navigation isn’t working properly. You’re being led in circles, with no way of knowing how to get to the airport.
Jul 21, 2022·7 mins read
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Behind the map
How maps can save connected cars from data outages
Connected cars are promising us a future of safer and less stressful driving. Driver aids built on data, knowledge and information are starting to bring this vision to life. But there’s a problem, what happens when we don’t have a data signal or cellular connection?
Jul 05, 2022·7 mins read
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Behind the map
Mapping for color blindness: High contrast dedicated color schemes
Making maps is a tricky business, reading them can be equally tricky too, especially if you aren’t able to perceive a full spectrum of color. All those fine lines, colors, contrasts and shades can make it difficult, if not impossible, to differentiate between road types, features, grid lines, contours and other map features. Thankfully, with more mindful design, we can make maps accessible to everyone.
May 19, 2022·3 mins read
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Behind the map
The Boise boom: How mapmakers keep on top of boomtowns
The world is changing by the minute. And, thanks to localized economic development and sudden population growth, some places are changing faster than others. Keeping up with that change isn’t easy.
Apr 28, 2022·9 mins read
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Behind the map
A closer look at TomTom’s privacy policy
Privacy is complicated, but it shouldn’t be. If a tech company says that it’s not tracking your location, it shouldn’t be tracking your location at all. If you opt out of being tracked, it’s clear what your intention is; it’s not an invitation for the tech company to find ways around your intention. With the help of a few industry experts, I put TomTom’s approach to privacy under the microscope and found it has a refreshingly unique and progressive approach to data privacy.
Jan 28, 2022·8 mins read
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Behind the map
How routing algorithms prioritize safety over speed in rural Finland
Providing drivers with the best route possible is no simple task. Routing algorithms that take care of directing a driver from A to B rely on immense amounts of map data that needs to be up to date, accurate and contextual. As one instance in Finland shows, if map data isn’t up to scratch, drivers can be put in unnecessary danger.
Jan 17, 2022·8 mins read
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Behind the map
RoadRunner: Instant Maps
I’d like to show you something we’ve been working on for some time: RoadRunner.
Jan 14, 2022·2 mins read
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Behind the map
Meet the devs that coded their way out of the coronavirus chip shortage
Necessity is the mother of invention. Never has that been truer. With global chip shortages ravaging automotive supply chains, carmakers are facing factory closures, production is slowing and costs are rising. Engineers at TomTom, though, are finding ways to innovate around the problem to prevent production delays.
Dec 10, 2021·13 mins read
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