The SG startup showing how 3D mapping isn’t just Google’s game to lose

Google Maps seems unbeatable, especially with its Street View feature. It’s hard to imagine any startup producing a map that can match that level of depth and detail.

While the tech giant uses the Street View car – a camera system perched on the roof of a vehicle – to collect images, it requires a lot of manpower and money to do so.

Vizzio Technologies says it has achieved the same results – if not better – as Street View without relying on 360-degree cameras like Google does. Instead, the Singapore-based startup uses its own algorithms and AI.

Photo credit: Vizzio

“Cities in the Middle East will look exactly as they are built, and locations in Singapore will reflect their unique architectural styles – something that’s comparable to Google Maps but way cheaper and faster to produce,” says Chau Nguyen, co-CEO of Vizzio.

Founded in 2020, the startup generates 3D maps of cities with the help of satellite imagery and deep-learning algorithms. Vizzio has created a digital 3D map of Singapore and is developing a digital twin of the world via the same method.

How the company builds 3D maps of the world / Photo credit: Vizzio

“There are many software solutions out there that understand buildings, but they cannot capture the actual look and feel of the entire city,” Vizzio founder Jon Lee, tells Tech in Asia.

Vizzio’s proprietary tech processes images by capturing and understanding geographical features, building textures and colors, determining the flow of geography, and providing an accurate representation, explains Lee, who also serves as the startup’s co-CEO and vice chairman.

Digital 3D mapping has many use cases, according to Nguyen. For instance, gaming companies can use Vizzio’s model for real-time world map data, while the military can use it for war simulation, among other purposes.

In fact, the startup said it is working with the defense forces of at least two countries in Asia but didn’t provide further details.

“With our tech, you can have a police command center with a 3D model of the entire Singapore, tracking every vehicle and manpower on the ground,” says Lee.

Vizzio’s model also has applications in architecture and engineering. Saudi Arabia’s government, for example, uses the tech to track progress at construction sites for its King Abdullah Economic City (KAEC) project.

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