March 2022 Summaries

Mapbox Oy celebrates its four-year anniversary of establishing an office in Helsinki, Finland, reflecting on its growth and accomplishments since its inception. The office was initiated by Thiago Santos and Bruno Abinader, who convinced Mapbox's founder during a tech event in Helsinki. Initially located in Espoo, the office moved to a central Helsinki location due to its convenience and appeal to employees. The office has become a dynamic hub, hosting diverse teams such as GL Native, Core SDK, Android, iOS, and backend engineers, and has been involved in significant automotive partnerships with companies like Porsche and Rimac. The office's growth is exemplified by its relocation to a larger space and a headcount nearing 50. Employees highlight the company's commitment to innovation, professional growth, and alignment with personal values as reasons for their enthusiasm and dedication to Mapbox.

Celebrating International Women's Day and Women's History Month, Mapbox emphasizes the importance of breaking down biases and fostering a diverse, equitable, and inclusive world. The company's GEnder Minority (GEM) Employee Resource Group plays a pivotal role in supporting gender minorities by promoting mentorship, community, and advocacy within the workplace. Maia Rosengarten, a Software Engineer and chair of GEM, shares her journey from experiencing imposter syndrome to empowerment, thanks to a mentor who encouraged her shift from social sciences to tech. This experience highlighted the transformative power of mentorship and community, leading Rosengarten to lead efforts in building supportive networks for gender minorities at Mapbox. Through initiatives like these, Mapbox aims to continue advocating for an inclusive environment where differences are celebrated and all voices are uplifted.

Mapbox has significantly updated its satellite imagery by adding over 3.6 million square kilometers of current high-resolution imagery from Maxar, covering regions including the UK, Italy, Finland, Japan, India, and China. This update enhances the quality of their global map, which initially expanded by 135 million square kilometers at the end of 2020, by seamlessly integrating with existing data and removing cloud cover to reveal land features previously obscured. The improvements also include newer imagery for countries such as Great Britain and Italy, which is now on average two years more current, while regions like Norway and Finland have imagery that is three years newer. This upgrade benefits users by providing a clear backdrop for navigation, trip planning, and activities such as trail exploration, and it also reaches approximately 25% of the global population with over 150,000 square kilometers added in each of the Americas, Africa, and Australia, 1.3 million square kilometers over Europe, and 2.2 million square kilometers covering Asia.