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According to a finding by MacRumors, a new Apple job listing is looking for an iPhone software engineer to help the current Maps team improve the iPhone’s built-in Maps application.

A quote from the job listing follows:

We want to take Maps to the next level, rethink how users use Maps and change the way people find things. We want to do this in a seamless, highly interactive and enjoyable way. We’ve only just started.

Such a job listing is rather unusual for Apple, and hints at competition. Google has become a leader in the mapping sector, which has even been an essential component of the iPhone Maps application to date. Also, recently Google has introduced many new features into its own Android OS’s mapping app, and although Apple and Google are said to be bringing these new features and technologies over to the iPhone, it seems Apple may be working on their own mapping technology.

Of course, none of this is for certain, and Apple could still very much just be aiding Google in porting this technology over to the iPhone OS, which could possibly take some time. However, some more evidence indicating Apple is up to something is that the company recently acquired a mapping company called Placebase, which had been well known for differentiating itself from what Google has been offering the mapping market. The former CEO of Placebase is now also employed at Apple as part of the company’s “Geo Team,” which has led people to believe Apple actually is looking to become less reliant on others’ technology.