Key Information
- The Assistant Driving Mode in Google Maps has been permanently discontinued, as confirmed by the company.
- This feature is another casualty in the ongoing Gemini transition.
- As of February 2024, most functionalities were stripped away, leaving only a media control bar and a voice assistant button until recently.
Google has officially announced the removal of Assistant Driving Mode from Android as part of the Gemini transition. The feature has gone through several changes since its inception in 2019, most notably losing the app dashboard that played a vital role in the Driving Mode experience. It is now completely unavailable within the Google Maps app for Android, according to a statement to 9to5Google.
By February 2024, the app launcher featuring large, touch-friendly icons for use while driving was eliminated. The last iteration of Assistant Driving Mode provided only a media playback bar and a control button. It was primarily used by Android users without access to Android Auto, as it once offered similar functionalities.
Initially, Assistant Driving Mode was intended as a replacement for Android Auto for Phone Screens, which was discontinued in 2021.
The app launcher for Assistant Driving Mode was among several feature removals announced by Google Assistant in January 2024. “The ability to use the app launcher in Google Assistant driving mode on Google Maps for reading and sending messages, making calls, and controlling media has been removed,” the company stated in a support document at the time. “Voice control on Google Maps remains available as before.”
As of now, even the playback controls and voice command buttons from Assistant Driving Mode are no longer available in Google Maps. This deliberate removal is part of the Gemini transition, according to the company, confirming that Assistant Driving Mode in Maps is permanently gone.
This action is part of a broader shift from Google Assistant to Gemini, which was officially announced in March 2025 and is actively being implemented, with most mobile devices expected to transition away from Assistant in favor of Gemini soon.