- Apple Maps is getting a huge Flyover visual upgrade
- It will use Vision Intelligence and aerial imagery to create detailed 3D models of urban landscapes
- It looks like Apple has also adopted Gaussian Slatting to help render its 3D models
Apple’s upcoming iOS 27 upgrade isn’t just about fancy new AI upgrades like the new Siri voice assistant — but Apple Maps is also getting quite a noticeable revamp.
During its WWDC 2026 keynote, Apple took a moment to highlight the new visual upgrade to the Flyover tool in Apple Maps, which lets you see over 350 global cities in 3D from a bird’s-eye view. In iOS 27, Flyover will display buildings and natural landscapes using a combination of aerial imagery and Apple’s own Vision Intelligence models to produce 3D views that are even more detailed.
Although Apple did not go into further detail, the images used in The WWDC presentation suggests that the company has also adopted Gaussian Splatting to create its 3D landscapes, a graphics technique that uses video footage as the basis for building a 3D frame. The tool could really give Apple a big edge over Google Maps, which still uses photogrammetry to generate its own 3D models.
It is not a theory that is completely out of the question; there are users out there who have also pointed this out after seeing the newly rendered images in Apple’s keynote (see below).
holy shit! apple just beat google to the top — 3d gaussian splash comes to apple maps. These 3d scenes are made from oblique aerial images. but unlike blobby photogrammetry – no more broccoli trees, no more melted power lines – ground level detail that actually lasts… pic.twitter.com/Iv95I3yfbj8 June 2026
Flyover’s enhanced imagery is designed to bring out every visual aspect of Apple Maps 3D aerial imagery, including the small, dirty parts that go unnoticed. Speaking at WWDC, Vice President of OS Program Management Stacey Ford shared the following: “From beautiful architectural details to the shapes of individual trees, to the way light reflects off the glass of skyscrapers, you’ll see cities around the world like never before”.
The update is a pretty big technical shift for Apple Maps, and will join other upgrades from macOS Golden Gate to custom AirPods EQ tweaks in iOS 27. The only downside is that you’ll have to wait a bit to test Flyover’s new look, as iOS 27 is expected to be released publicly in September – but you can register as a developer and download the first iOS 27 now.
Although there are still a few months to go, users have seen signs that Apple is tinkering with Flyover ahead of the wider rollout of iOS 27.
When the announcement was shared to the r/AppleMaps community on Reddit, users flocked to the comments to share more theories. One user believes that Apple is conducting a “weird rollout,” saying that switching to iOS 27 will return previously supported cities to low-quality satellite imagery, while newly supported cities will receive the visual upgrade.
From the user experience, they recall seeing a handful of US locations including San Antonio, Houston, Dallas and Phoenix return to 2D, as well as international cities like Sydney, Paris and Stockholm. On the other hand, Vegas, London, Berlin, Barcelona and others have been upgraded.
At the moment, it’s still very much a guessing game, and Apple likely won’t provide any further information until we get closer to the wider iOS 27 launch later this year. That said, Apple’s move from photogrammetry to Gaussian splatting marks a major shift in digital map rendering, and now we’re just waiting for Google Maps to follow suit.
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