When you’re a dad or mum with younger kids, you then’ll in all probability hear this quite a bit on Christmas Eve: “The place’s Santa proper now?” With monitoring instruments just like the NORAD Santa Tracker and Google’s Santa Tracker, everybody can know when Father Christmas will arrive. Plus, there are actually some new AI instruments to deliver the vacation magic.
Right here’s how one can observe Santa’s journey this Christmas Eve with the assistance of AI.
Observe Santa Claus with NORAD
NORAD (North American Aerospace Protection Command) had the primary ever Santa tracker in 1955. Whereas it was once only a boring animation of Santa’s sleigh and reindeer flying throughout a map, NORAD has added tons of options since then, akin to enjoyable mini-games, movies, tales, and Christmas music.
Lately, NORAD’s Santa Tracker teamed up with OpenAI to introduce new AI-powered options. These embody a picture generator that transforms your selfie into an animated elf character, a software for producing toy concepts and changing them into printable coloring ebook pages, and a fill-in-the-blank storytelling software that permits households so as to add names, locations, and different particulars to create a enjoyable vacation story to learn aloud.
Relatively than a 2D mannequin, the NORAD Santa tracker has a 3D visible depiction of Santa’s journey, because the platform was constructed on Cesium’s open supply 3D mapping library. It additionally makes use of Bing Maps satellite tv for pc imagery, making the globe look extra “practical.”
Together with the tracker software, customers may see a “Santa Cam,” which has movies of Santa making his approach around the globe to ship presents to each child on the great listing.
NORAD’s web site has Santa’s North Pole Village, which features a vacation countdown, arcade-style video games, kid-friendly music, an internet library, and varied movies that may be watched on NORAD’s official YouTube channel.
Techcrunch occasion
San Francisco
|
October 13-15, 2026
NORAD Santa tracker is obtainable on noradsanta.org, or you possibly can obtain the official NORAD Tracks Santa Claus app on Apple’s App Retailer or the Google Play Retailer. The web site is obtainable in English, Chinese language, French, Spanish, Japanese, German, Italian, and Portuguese.
You can even monitor Santa by means of NORAD Tracker’s social media accounts, akin to Fb, Twitter/X, and Instagram.
For a extra personable expertise, name 1-877-HI-NORAD (1-877-446-6732), and also you’ll converse with a volunteer from the group’s name middle who’ll replace you on Santa’s location.
Observe Santa Claus with Google
Google’s Santa Tracker launched in 2004 and simulates the monitoring of Santa. The web site encompasses a stay map of Santa’s present location, his subsequent cease, a stay video feed of his route, and the estimated arrival time for every location. It additionally reveals the overall distance that Santa has traveled thus far and the variety of presents he has delivered.
All through December, the web page operates as Santa’s Village, the place customers can play mini-games, take quizzes, watch animated movies, and discover different interactive actions. For example, gamers can construct their very own elf in Google’s “Elf Maker” recreation in addition to host a live performance with “Elf Jamband.” Youngsters may discover ways to code with straightforward and enjoyable tutorials like “Code Boogie.”
Moreover, customers can enlist the assistance of Google Assistant to study Santa’s whereabouts. You may ask, “Hey, Google, the place’s Santa?” and even “What’s new on the North Pole?” which helps you to tune in to Google’s North Pole Newscast, the place you possibly can hear what Santa and his elves are as much as that day. Google Assistant additionally helps you to name Santa himself.
This story was up to date after publication.
