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Writer's pictureChris McLellan

Episode 15: Can artificial intelligence improve personal navigation?

Updated: Aug 24, 2023

The Ask AI interview with Bin Liu, CEO & Co-Founder, iMerciv / Mapinhood


Special thanks to Microsoft Canada and Cinchy for sponsoring the third series of the Ask AI podcast and supporting greater awareness of artificial intelligence in Canada. All of our episodes and 100s of AI profiles are also available from our chatbot, generously sponsored by Toronto’s Ada Support.

Let’s face it, the World is a pretty crowded place. Recent estimates now place the global population at over 7.8 billion, which is an incredible number of people going to work, school, and social events every day. Equally staggering is the UN projection that over 68% of us will be living in urban environments within the next 30 years.



Artificial Intelligence

Artificial Intelligence and its impact in future


We all know that vehicles will soon be using artificial intelligence to navigate our roads, but little has been shared about the impact that AI navigation technologies will have on the billions of people who rely on the “foot-mobile” as their primary mode of transportation.


As our cities grow increasingly dense (and in some cases more dangerous) they also present new obstacles in the form of construction, congestion, and multi-modal transportation. This trend presents the greatest challenge for people with vision loss and mobility issues; however, the COVID-19 pandemic has also introduced issues for billions of urban dwellers who need to find ways to avoid exposure as they move along sidewalks, pathways, and public spaces.


Tune in to this episode of Ask AI and learn how Bin Liu, CEO and co-founder of Toronto-based iMerciv is using machine learning to augment the pedestrian experience for people with vision loss and helping city-dwellers reduce their exposure to COVID-19.


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Episode highlights

  • How a poker game lead to a co-founder relationship

  • The 3 ways that “traditional” navigation technology has failed pedestrians

  • How Mapinhood uses machine learning technology to produce personalized routing plans

  • Why adding public safety within personal navigation is not always a “data issue”

  • The future of AI-enhanced personal navigation

  • Why Bin finds “Evolutionary AI” so fascinating

  • The challenges of modelling from open source data

Episode links

Mapinhood website (where you can find app store links)

Mapillary (one of Bin’s favourite apps)

Episode credits

Sponsors: Microsoft Canada and Cinchy Chatbot partner: Ada Support Executive Producer: Chris McLellan Host: Jaxson Khan Assistant Producers: Oleena Mak and Kristin Riddell Original music: Mike LeTourneau

About Ask AI

Ask AI is a volunteer project exploring the fast-emerging artificial intelligence sector in Canada and beyond.Our projects include a popular podcast and live events. To learn more about sponsorship and volunteering please contact us or ask our chatbot.

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