Forget GPS, three simple words reveal any location in the world
When it comes to finding a specific location, GPS is incredible, but let’s face it – nobody is exchanging coordinates.
An app called what3words is trying to make finding people and places, as well as meeting up – simple, fast and easy.
Plus, it works even without a signal.
The app recently teamed up with BMO Stadium in Los Angeles – home of the Los Angeles Football Club – to publish specific what3words addresses for key locations such as gates, the team store, concession stands, and the box office.
“It’s human nature not to pay attention to signs necessarily,” said Christian Lau, the stadium’s Chief Technology officer. “Having a tech solution for a younger demographic that they can use, they’re familiar with it, it just makes everything easier to get in and around the venue.”
What3words divides the world into 10×10 foot squares and has given each one a unique but memorable three-world name.
“GPS coordinates are kind of confusing and complicated. I mean nobody really in everyday life does that. So the idea of what3words is just to make a big load of numbers super simple, like as easy as just saying something like table, chair, spoon and you refer to one point in the world somewhere,” said Chris Sheldrick, co-founder of what3words.
I’ve been using the app since I learned about its application for search and rescue missions. What I like about it is how specific it can get.
Instead of a general address that takes you to a main entrance or a dropped PIN that doesn’t work well across platforms, what3words can direct you to a super specific spot anywhere in the world, and it works without a signal in Compass mode.
To test it out, Lau went somewhere in the stadium and then sent me the words of where he went. I walked to him, following the compass direction on my phone to find him. It even told me how close I was in feet.
“Wo imagine when you are in an environment like Coachella, where there’s thousands of people just everywhere, you can literally use the compass feature to get to the person you’re trying to find within a ten foot square,” said Lau.
What3words is partnering with various organizations and companies to make its tech more widely accepted. They are working with car makers to let drivers use the words to navigate, as well as police, 911, and fire departments to allow those who need help to just say the three words where they are located.
You can download what3words for free on iOS and Android.
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