Waze and Google Maps teams to merge

Nearly 10 years since Google acquired the navigation app Waze, it will now be merging the 500 Waze employees into its Geo division.

The two teams so far have remained independent. 

Meanwhile, the two apps will continue to remain separate and no change to user experience is expected due to the teams' merger.

Google Geo is the division for Google's portfolio of real-world mapping products that include Google Maps, Google Earth, and Street View.

The merger will see Waze CEO Neha Parikh exit the company following a transition period. The navigation app has about 151 million monthly active users worldwide.

“By bringing the Waze team into Geo’s portfolio of real-world mapping products, the teams will benefit from further increased technical collaboration,” a Google spokesperson said.