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Google‘s maps division on Monday reclassified the U.S. as a “delicate nation,” a designation it reserves for states with strict governments and border disputes, CNBC has realized.
The brand new classification for the U.S. got here after President Donald Trump mentioned his administration would make identify modifications on official maps and federal communications. These modifications embody renaming the Gulf of Mexico because the “Gulf of America” and renaming Mount Denali as Mount McKinley.
Google’s order to cease designating the U.S. as a “non-sensitive” nation got here on Monday, in accordance with inner correspondence considered by CNBC. That is when the corporate introduced it will change the identify of the physique of water between the Yucatan and Florida peninsulas to the “Gulf of America” in Google Maps after the Trump administration updates its “official authorities sources.”
The choice to raise the U.S. to its listing of delicate international locations illustrates the challenges that tech corporations face as they attempt to navigate the early days of a second Trump presidency. Because the begin of the 12 months, Meta, TikTok, Amazon and others have adjusted their merchandise and insurance policies to mirror Trump’s political beliefs, insurance policies and govt orders.
Trump had a rocky relationship with Silicon Valley all through his first presidency and did not shrink back from criticizing the sector all through his 2024 marketing campaign. Extra lately, tech executives, together with Google CEO Sundar Pichai, have pursued nearer ties with Trump, with a number of standing behind the president throughout his inauguration.
Google’s listing of delicate international locations contains China, Russia, Israel, Saudi Arabia and Iraq, amongst others. The label can be used for international locations which have “distinctive geometry or distinctive labeling,” in accordance with inner correspondence reviewed by CNBC.
The U.S. and Mexico are new additions.
The “delicate” classification is a technical configuration that signifies some labels inside a given nation are totally different from different international locations, an organization spokesperson instructed CNBC.
It is unclear if Google’s reclassification of the U.S. extends past its “Geo” division.
On this photograph illustration, the Gulf of Mexico is displayed on the Google Maps app on Jan. 28, 2025 in San Anselmo, California.
Justin Sullivan | Getty Photographs
With greater than 2 billion month-to-month customers, Google Maps is the world’s high navigation app.
Some crew members throughout the maps division have been ordered to urgently make modifications to the placement identify and recategorize the U.S. from “non-sensitive” to “delicate,” in accordance with the inner correspondence. The modifications got a uncommon “P0” order, that means it had the best precedence stage and workers have been instantly notified and instructed to drop what they have been doing to work on it.
Google’s order states that the Gulf of America title change needs to be handled much like the Persian Gulf, which in Arab international locations is displayed on Google Maps as Arabian Gulf.
“We have acquired a number of questions on naming inside Google Maps,” the corporate mentioned in an X put up. “We have now a longstanding observe of making use of identify modifications after they have been up to date in official authorities sources.”
Google added that the identify Gulf of Mexico will stay displayed for customers in Mexico. Customers in different international locations will see each names, the corporate mentioned.
When the Obama administration modified the identify of the Alaska mountain from Mount McKinley to Denali in August 2015, Google up to date Maps to mirror the identify change, a Google spokesperson instructed CNBC.
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