July 2025

The month in brief

We launched Different Breed Maps to improve accessibility, performance, and control. Built on the OpenStreetMap collective, the new stack brings richer feedback for screen readers, faster caching under load, and more useful details for wayfinding. Editors get better autocomplete, and fans get an Open in Google Maps link for native navigation when they need it.

Deep dive: Why build our own maps?

Accessibility and cost pressure pushed us to rethink mapping. By moving off closed APIs, we can tune semantics for assistive tech, cache intelligently during demand spikes, and ship features (like numbered POIs or editorial ordering) without vendor constraints. It’s about independence—and a better experience for both editors and fans.

Changelog

Improvements

• New Interactive Maps (Jul 6): Screen-reader feedback improvements; smarter caching; richer details; editor autocomplete; “Open in Google Maps” under POIs.