Confirmed by 2 independent sources.
Apple has officially updated its Apple Maps service to rename Lake Ontario as “Lake America” for users within the United States, matching a prior move by Google. The update complies with an executive order signed by President Donald Trump requiring federal geographic databases to reflect the new designation.
The altered name is visible only domestically, whereas Canadian users continue to see Lake Ontario and international audiences are presented with both labels. This corporate alignment coincides with diplomatic friction between the United States and Canada, echoing a similar renaming controversy involving the Gulf of Mexico last year.
Amid public backlash over the tech giants’ compliance, rival mapping platform MapQuest has experienced a massive surge in popularity. By refusing to adopt the federally mandated name changes, MapQuest captured the top download spot on the U.S. App Store, outperforming major fixtures like ChatGPT.
- Apple Maps changed Lake Ontario to Lake America for U.S. users, following Google’s footsteps.
- The modification responds to a presidential executive order updating official U.S. geographic databases.
- Canada retains the original name in maps, while international versions display dual labeling.
- MapQuest refused to change the names, driving a massive surge in app downloads and top chart rankings.
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