Waze

This article is about the GPS navigation software. For the Skepta, Chip and Young Adz song, see Waze (song). For the Tierra Whack song, see Whack World.
Waze Mobile Ltd
Developer(s)Google
Initial release2006; 18 years ago (2006) (as FreeMap Israel)
Available in50 languages[1]
TypeSatellite navigation software
License
Websitewaze.com

Waze Mobile Ltd,[2] (/weɪz/; Hebrew: ווייז מובייל בע"מ) doing business as Waze (Hebrew: ווייז), formerly FreeMap Israel, is a subsidiary company of Google that provides satellite navigation software on smartphones and other computers that support the Global Positioning System (GPS). In addition to turn-by-turn navigation, it incorporates user-submitted travel times and route details while downloading location-dependent information over a cellular network. Waze describes its application as a community-driven initiative that is free to download and use.

The software was originally developed in Israel by Waze Mobile, a company founded by Israeli entrepreneurs Ehud Shabtai, Amir Shinar, and Uri Levine, veterans of the Israeli intelligence unit 8200.[3][4] Funding for the initial project was provided by two Israeli venture capital firms, Magma and Vertex Ventures Israel, as well as by an early-stage American venture capital firm, Bluerun Ventures. In June 2013, Waze Mobile was acquired by Google for US$1.3 billion.[5][6][7]

The application generates revenue through hyperlocal advertising to an estimated 130 million users.[8]

  1. ^ Waze Staff (August 21, 2018). "Waze's 50th Language: It's a Tie!". Medium. Retrieved November 25, 2019.
  2. ^ "ווייז מוביל בע"מ". OpenCorporates. February 11, 2008. Retrieved August 20, 2023.
  3. ^ From The Israeli Army Unit 8200 To Silicon Valley - TechCrunch, 20 March 2015
  4. ^ Israeli military intelligence unit drives country’s hi-tech boom - The Guardian, 12 August 2013
  5. ^ "Google buys Waze map app for $1.3bn". the Guardian. June 11, 2013. Retrieved September 3, 2022.
  6. ^ Cohan, Peter. "Four Reasons Google Bought Waze". Forbes. Retrieved September 3, 2022.
  7. ^ Kelleher, Suzanne Rowan. "Did Google Just Deliver A Death Blow To Waze?". Forbes. Retrieved September 3, 2022.
  8. ^ Pressman, Aaron; Lashinsky, Adam (October 11, 2019). "Why Waze Doesn't Share Traffic Data With Google Maps—Data Sheet". Fortune. Retrieved October 11, 2019.