Editor’s note: Today's article comes from Louise Thomas, Co-founder and Chief Executive Officer, Air Aware Labs and Dr. Will Hicks, Co-founder and Chief Scientific Officer, Air Aware Labs. The Co-founders share how their solution helps people make informed decisions to breathe cleaner, healthier air with the Google Maps Platform Air Quality API.
With air pollution currently the second-highest risk factor for global health, almost every person on Earth now breathes unhealthy air every day. As a Londoner, our co-founder Louise Thomas was no stranger to air pollution, but it wasn’t until she volunteered to help improve air quality around her daughter’s school that she realized how much more could be done to inform the public about the air they breathe. Meanwhile, as Thomas’s co-founder Dr. Will Hicks researched air pollution for his PhD, he was struck by its pervasive effects on the body, and was moved to do something about it.
Joining forces, Thomas and Hicks formed Air Aware Labs to give people reliable insights into the quality of the air around us. Combining AI with real-time air quality data from Google Maps Platform, our solution helps people make informed decisions to breathe cleaner, healthier air. Our first integration was with Strava, giving millions of runners the opportunity to see air quality data in their feeds as they plan their routes. Then in April 2025, we launched our consumer app, AirTrack, bringing personalized air pollution insights to everyone.
As we built our platform, we knew it would only be as good as the data we put in. That meant using air quality insights that could not only provide accurate air quality data, but would do so in real time, allowing users to make decisions based on the air they were breathing at that moment. We looked at a number of providers, but with its real-time hourly air quality information to a resolution of 500 x 500 meters, and its ability to show in-depth information about different pollutants, the Air Quality API from Google Maps Platform stood out as the best solution for our needs. Our in-house testing found the model R² values are typically above 0.7 for pollutants like PM2.5 (fine particulate matter) and nitrogen dioxide across diverse urban environments, so we knew users would be able to trust the insights they received. At the same time, the global coverage of Google Maps Platform meant we would be able to scale up the app and expand easily to new regions as we grew.
Giving users a clearer picture of the air they breathe
With the AirTrack app, users can now travel around a given area and get accurate, local information about the levels of pollutants they’re breathing. Combining air pollution feeds from the Air Quality API with the user’s GPS coordinates, our algorithms show the level of exposure users have to different pollutants over time. We display these insights in a dashboard where users can see all their recent activity. For any given route, users can see:
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A route score, to understand how good their choice of route was compared to the alternatives.
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A map of their route, showing where the pollutants were at their highest and lowest levels.
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A time score, showing how the air quality on that route compared to other times of day.
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A visualization of fluctuations in air quality on that route over time.
Displaying clear, simple information in this way allows users to quickly make informed decisions about which routes to take, and when to take them. At the same time, since the Air Quality API allows us to show individual pollutants such as nitrogen dioxide and PM2.5 pollution, users that want more detailed insights can drill down into specific pollutant levels to make personalized decisions according to their own health needs. For example, a runner with asthma could decide to avoid routes with high nitrogen dioxide, while someone concerned with cognitive decline could prioritize their PM2.5 exposure. Without the Air Quality API, insights at this level of granularity simply wouldn’t be possible.
Reducing exposure to specific pollutants with personalized route recommendations
We’re now focusing on building predictive functionality and enabling more personalized recommendations. For example, we plan to use the Air Quality API to forecast hourly air quality information, meaning users will be able to enter a specific route and receive suggestions about the best time to go, as well as alternative, low-pollution routes. We can also combine those forecasts with more specific information around users’ health for more personalized recommendations, for example suggesting a route that helps a person with cardiovascular disease to avoid prolonged exposure to PM2.5.
By combining these insights with data from wearable devices, users will soon be able to get even more personalized insights into their pollution exposure, such as showing how a user’s heart rate and breathing rate have affected their intake of specific pollutants in the air. Given how much air quality is influenced by weather conditions, we’re also planning to integrate the Weather API from Google Maps Platform to allow us to provide even richer air quality insights and forecasts. The more data we can combine with the data we receive from the Air Quality API, the more profound the insights, and the stronger the recommendations we can provide to our users.
Helping people breathe cleaner air, one route at a time
We’re also experimenting with Gemini Pro to build a chatbot that would allow users to use natural language to gain clear, easy-to-understand insights into the quality of the air around them, as well as recommendations on how to achieve their own personal health goals. Giving users their own personal air quality scientist in this way will make it even easier for them to make healthy decisions and reduce their exposure to harmful pollutants.
Alongside our consumer app, we’re also expanding the roll out of our business app, AirTrack Enterprise, which organizations can offer as a benefit to help improve employees’ health, while gaining enterprise-level insights into the air pollution exposure of their workforce. In the face of one of the biggest health challenges of our time, we’re determined to give as many people as possible the tools they need to breathe clean, healthy air. With Google Maps Platform, we’re making that possible.
