Apple to launch paid ads in Maps across the U.S. and Canada this summer

Apple announced plans to introduce paid advertising in Apple Maps in the U.S. and Canada this summer, allowing businesses to claim their physical location and appear above organic search results, while also revamping its business tools suite next month. Apple says the ads will maintain its existing privacy controls, with user location and ad interaction data staying on-device and not linked to Apple accounts or shared with third parties. The move puts Apple in more direct competition with Google and Meta for local advertising dollars, and comes as two of its biggest revenue streams, App Store commissions and its Google search traffic deal, face mounting regulatory and AI-driven pressure.