Google is planning to sell new mapping APIs that would enable businesses to construct products that make use of energy and environmental data.
The organization has data on more than 350 million buildings, as indicated by viewed reports. Google sees a scope of potential clients including Zillow, Marriott and Tesla and PG&E.
Google is planning to license new sets of mapping data to a range of companies to use as they build products around renewable energy, and is hoping to generate up to $100 million in its first year.
Access to brand-new application programming interfaces (APIs) containing data on solar power, energy, and air quality will be offered for sale by the company.
A Solar API, which could be used by solar installers like Tesla and SunRun, and Energy and solar design companies like Aurora Solar, will be one of the new offerings.
Google also sees customer opportunities with real estate companies. Some of the data from the Solar API will come from a consumer-focused pilot called Project Sunroof, a solar savings calculator that originally launched in 2015.
The program allows users to enter their address and to receive estimated solar costs such as electric bill savings and the size of the solar installation they’ll need. It also offers 3D modeling of the roofs of buildings and nearby trees based on Google Maps data.
Google plans to sell API access to individual building data, as well as aggregated data for all buildings in a particular city or county, one document states. The company says it has data for over 350 million buildings, according to documents, up significantly from the 60 million buildings it cited for Project Sunroof in 2017.
The solar APIs of the company are expected to bring in between $90 and $100 million in revenue in their first year of operation, according to an internal document. There’s likewise a possibility to interface with Google Cloud items down the line, reports state.
The company also plans to announce an Air Quality API as part of the planned launch. This API will enable customers to request data on air quality, such as pollutants and health-based recommendations for specific locations. It’ll also include computerized heat guides of the information and hourly air quality data, as well as air quality history of as long as 30 days.
The most recent income play comes as the organization has been attempting to adapt its guides items as it faces strain to deliver income in the midst of a more extensive monetary stoppage.
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The company has been investing in newer technologies like generative AI and sustainability, which it hopes to capitalize on with the Solar API, in addition to concentrating on improving efficiency.
The company currently licenses its mapping API for navigation to companies like Uber, which said in 2019 it paid Google $58 million over three years.
Maps API revenue goes toward the company’s cloud segment, which finally turned profitable in the first quarter but has had a rocky path toward trying to compete with market leaders Amazon and Microsoft.
Google doesn’t break out how much its Maps business makes, but it has historically been one of Google’s most under-monetized products, Morgan Stanley analyst Brian Nowak told CNBC in 2021.
At the time, Morgan Stanley had estimated Google Maps would earn $11.1 billion by this year as new travel products and promoted pins began to increase ad revenue.
The move also comes as the company attempts to streamline its mapping products. In June, the company was laying off employees at traffic-reporting app Waze, which it acquired in 2013, and combining it with the Google Maps team.
Google has not yet responded to the story.