Google has officially confirmed a big change in Google Maps. The traditional Q&A feature is being removed from the Maps interface and replaced with a new AI powered Ask button inside Google Business Profiles.
With this update, users will no longer scroll through long lists of old questions. Instead, they can simply ask their question and get an instant AI generated answer directly in Google Maps.
A quick reminder about the Q&A feature
Google originally launched the Q&A feature in Google Maps back in 2017. It allowed customers to ask public questions and get answers from business owners or other users.
However, earlier this year, Google started reducing the visibility of Q&A across Maps and local results. In some regions, the feature was fully disabled. At the same time, Google also deprecated the Q&A feature in its API, which was a clear sign that changes were coming.
Introduction of the AI powered Ask button
Alongside removing Q&A, Google began rolling out the Ask on Google Maps button in 2025. This new feature lets customers ask questions and receive quick answers powered by AI, based on business provided information and real customer reviews.
Official confirmation from Google
Dan Boguslavsky, a Product Specialist at Google, confirmed this update in the Google Business Profile Help Forum.
He explained that Google received feedback that Q&A had become difficult to use over time. Customers often struggled to find clear and timely answers among many outdated questions.
What is changing exactly?
According to Google, here is what business owners and customers can expect:
- Instead of browsing existing FAQs or waiting for replies, customers can ask a question and get an instant answer in Google Maps
- Answers are generated using your business details and relevant reviews
- Business owners no longer need to respond to dozens of repetitive questions
- Aggregated answers help save time and stay more accurate
- Your responses help Google answer similar questions for other users automatically
What happens to the existing Q&A section?
Dan also clarified that the Q&A section is not fully gone.
Business owners can still view and answer existing questions inside the Google Business Profile dashboard. These questions and answers will continue to help Google understand your business and may still be used behind the scenes to power AI responses in Maps.
You can find this section by logging into your Google Business Profile and navigating to the Q&A tab.
Frontend vs backend changes
To simplify it:
- Q&A is no longer visible to users on the Google Maps frontend
- The Q&A section still exists in the backend for business owners
- AI powered answers now handle most customer questions in real time
Ongoing community discussions
This change has already sparked conversations across local SEO communities. You can follow the discussion on Google Business Profile Help Forum and Local Search Forum.
Final thoughts
This update clearly shows Google’s shift toward AI driven customer interactions. For business owners, it means less manual work answering repeated questions. For customers, it means faster and more relevant answers.
Going forward, keeping your Google Business Profile updated with accurate details and helpful content will matter more than ever, since AI responses rely heavily on the information you provide.
