TomTom has become the first location data company in the world to take advantage of ChatGPT’s third party plugins.
The new plugin means that ChatGPT Plus subscribers get access to TomTom’s geolocation capabilities, like geocoding, map visualization and routing, right from within the familiar chat interface, so it can provide more accurate and detailed answers to location-based questions.
TomTom’s plugin adds an all-new dimension to ChatGPT’s results, going beyond standard text-based responses to display locations and routes on a map. If you’re planning a road trip from Sydney to the Blue Mountains, for instance, not only can ChatGPT give you turn-by-turn directions, it can also show you the way on a map – making those results instantly more helpful and visually appealing.
“ChatGPT had been on our radar for some time,” says Cezary Draus, staff software engineer at TomTom. “When OpenAI announced that they would be adding support for plugins in March 2023, we jumped at the chance to create our own plugin.”
The dev team knew that TomTom’s map data and location services had the potential to make ChatGPT even more useful for navigation, travel planning and exploration – and they were eager to turn that vision into reality.
Marcin Kmiecik, VP of software engineering at TomTom, confirms: “We knew that there was real value in a plugin that brought more location awareness to ChatGPT. We also knew that we probably weren’t the only company working on such a tool. It was a race against time to beat everyone else to the punch.”
“Perhaps the biggest value of ChatGPT plugins lies in their potential for integration,” says Draus. “It creates a virtuous cycle where we can empower other plugins with ours and vice versa. Users will be able to take advantage of these complementary capabilities in one place.”
For example, using a combination of plugins from TomTom and a real estate company, you could ask ChatGPT to show you a selection of properties for sale in downtown LA. and plan the optimal itinerary for visiting them all in one day. Similarly, with plugins from TomTom and a food delivery app, ChatGPT could serve up a list of pizza places near your location and show them on a map – making it easier for you to find the perfect place to order lunch.
