Kugelblitz is a new Mac app that shows Earth as a 3D globe using open map data. It needs no account, but it only runs on very recent Macs.
Kugelblitz is a new Mac app that works like Google Earth. It shows the planet as a 3D globe and lets you fly over real terrain. The maps come from open sources, and you do not need an account to use them. It drew 109 points and 32 comments on Hacker News, a popular tech discussion site.
The app shows Earth in three map styles: satellite imagery, a road map and a topographic map. The road and topographic maps sit on the globe's terrain, with buildings in 3D. You can also flip to a flat atlas view, which offers five ways of flattening the globe. The maker says flying around stays smooth even on an M1 Mac.
Most of the data comes straight from the groups that publish it. Street maps come from OpenStreetMap, served by the app's own server, so there are no regions to pick and no big download. A Library feature opens map services from around the world. A Sources and Licenses screen lists where every layer comes from.
The download is a 77.1 MB file. It requires macOS 27 or later and a Mac with Apple silicon, which means newer Macs rather than older Intel models. The developer says the app was built and tested on a Mac mini with an M1 chip and 16 GB of memory. The Vision Pro feature was checked with both Mac and headset on version 27.2.
The material does not say what the app costs or who makes it. It also does not say whether versions for other computers are planned. Anyone with a recent Mac can still look at the project page and decide whether the no-account, open-data approach suits them.
If you have a recent Apple silicon Mac running macOS 27, Kugelblitz is an account-free way to explore a 3D globe built on open map data.
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