We’re excited to share with you some of the powerful new capabilities that can transform how you analyze spatial data, automate workflows, and unlock insights. From streamlined predictive modeling to advanced AI integrations, these updates empower you to work smarter and faster. Let’s explore the top new analytics capabilities throughout ArcGIS!
1. Map Viewer Analysis: Simplified field calculations in ModelBuilder
Say hello to easier data manipulation with ModelBuilder’s new Calculate Field tool (in ArcGIS Online). Now you can effortlessly create new fields or update existing ones with calculated values as part of the overall model process. Whether you’re calculating population density, converting units, or deriving new metrics, this tool gives you more control while reducing errors.
For example, quickly generate a population density field by dividing total population by area, making it easier to use that value in downstream analysis steps, or incorporate it into your final output to spot trends and pull meaningful insights from your results.
2. Predictive Analytics: Easier data prep and improved confidence in model validation
Predictive analysis just became more accessible with three new tools in ArcGIS Pro 3.6 that supports different phases of your analytical workflow:
- The Evaluate Bin Sizes for Point Aggregation tool helps determine the optimal bin sizes for aggregating point data to scale, helping you make better decisions when preparing data for analysis.
- The Prepare Data for Prediction tool splits features into training and testing datasets and spatially thins data to reduce sampling bias, all in one tool.
- The Evaluate Predictions with Cross-Validation tool: Evaluate model performance using validation metrics, which helps ensure robust and unbiased model assessment. The tool works by testing the prediction model multiple times with different data splits called K-folds to get a reliable measure of how well it will perform on new, unseen data.
3. GeoAI: New Hugging Face integrations unlock possibilities
Text analysis capabilities have expanded with increased support for industry models. The ArcGIS pre-trained deep learning models in the ArcGIS Living Atlas now support a wider range of Hugging Face community models, including: entity recognition, text classification, text translation, and more.
This integration streamlines the use of cutting-edge AI models within ArcGIS workflows, allowing you to work more fluidly with different data types and unlock new analytical use cases.
4. Raster Analytics: Expediting suitability and density analysis
Compare suitability models side-by-side
A new model comparison interface in Suitability Modeler enables you to evaluate multiple models with different spatial requirements simultaneously. Compare approaches based on slope, distance to roads, population density, or any other factor, making it easier to brainstorm and identify the optimal location for your project.
Simplified density analysis
Two new percentile contour tools in ArcGIS Pro transform what were once complex, multi-step processes into single operations:
- Value Percentile Contours tool: Visualize areas based on density values. For example, law enforcement agencies can analyze crime density across a city, highlighting neighborhoods in specific percentile ranges (top 10% or bottom 20%) to identify areas with unusually high or low crime rates.
- Volume Percentile Contours tool: Identify the smallest geographic areas containing a specific percentage of total density volume. Using the same crime example, pinpoint areas containing the top 50% or 90% of total incidents to understand where criminal activity concentrates.
5. Graph Analytics: Enhanced visualization & analytics capabilities for the web
Knowledge Studio now supports the Filtered Find Path tool, giving you multiple ways to constrain shortest path queries through specific relationships and entities. Meanwhile, Map Viewer now supports editing pop-ups and enriched Arcade expressions for Knowledge Graph layers, and these layers are now supported in the ArcGIS Instant Apps Basic (Media Map) template.
In Pro 3.6, the Find Path tool is enhanced with a Least Cost Path and Cycle handling features, enabling more use cases like multi-modal or quick/high-level routing, and finding fraud ring transactions.
6. 3D Data: New support for Gaussian Splats
ArcGIS Pro 3.6 now supports a new layer type called Gaussian Splat layers that deliver photorealistic 3D visualization. These layers are georeferenced, so they align accurately with your spatial data, and they can be shared and viewed directly in ArcGIS Pro without converting to multiple formats. This reduces data duplication and saves storage, streamlining workflows, especially for reality mapping and urban modeling projects where creating lifelike environments is essential.
7. Automation: Improvements & new resources for low-code, no-code automation
ArcGIS Data Pipelines (Beta) in ArcGIS Enterprise 12.0
ArcGIS Data Pipelines is now available in beta for ArcGIS Enterprise organizations. Run data pipelines on a schedule with options to replace, append, update, or overwrite data, keeping your data current without manual intervention. This no-code application replaces repetitive workflows and Python scripts, dramatically boosting efficiency.
ModelBuilder Makeover
ArcGIS Pro 3.6 features a completely redesigned ModelBuilder interface with improved usability, responsiveness, and layout clarity. The consistent look and feel across ArcGIS Online and ArcGIS Pro makes building and managing geoprocessing workflows more intuitive than ever.
Ready-to-use ArcGIS Notebooks templates
ArcGIS Notebooks now include pre-defined templates for:
- Administrative tasks
- Content management
- Analysis and data science
- Mapping workflows
- Deep learning
Start faster, maintain consistency, and support a wider range of workflows with these ready-to-use starting points.
8. Microsoft Fabric Integration: Geospatial Analytics Meets Enterprise Data
ArcGIS GeoAnalytics for Microsoft Fabric (General availability)
This new Spark library brings geospatial analytics directly into Fabric’s data science and data engineering workloads. Discover where things are occurring, how they relate, and which actions to pursue—all within Microsoft Fabric Spark notebooks. Seamlessly integrate, transform, enrich, and analyze geospatial data alongside your enterprise data in the cloud.
ArcGIS Maps for Microsoft Fabric (Public Preview)
Try ArcGIS Maps for Microsoft Fabric at no cost during the public preview. This intelligent mapping capability adapts to any data, providing smart suggestions for visualization while giving you complete control. Visualize business data alongside critical infrastructure, environmental, and demographic data to see patterns, relationships, and trends that tables and basic maps can’t reveal.
Bringing it all together
These analytics enhancements represent a major leap forward in making sophisticated spatial analysis more accessible, efficient, and powerful. Whether you’re conducting predictive modeling, creating photorealistic 3D visualizations, or automating complex workflows, the latest ArcGIS releases provide the tools you need to unlock deeper insights and make better decisions.
…Plus, what’s coming!
We’re working on capabilities to make your Notebooks workflows even easier – an AI Assistant that is optimized to understand and write code for the ArcGIS Python Libraries. You’ll be able to pass in natural language prompts to generate new Python code, explain code you don’t understand, and fix code that is broken. Coming to beta in early 2026, with an Early Adopter Community that lets you test and give feedback, the ArcGIS Notebook assistant is almost here.
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