They're the purple 'Sponsored' pins and top listings in Maps results. Regular Google Ads inventory, not a separate product. You get them by running search campaigns with location assets attached (your linked Business Profile), letting your ads serve on Maps placements.
They charge like search (per click. Including calls and direction taps from the ad), and they matter most where the map IS the battlefield: 'near me' searches where the pack gets the taps and position four might as well be invisible.
Setup checklist: link Business Profile to Google Ads, enable location assets, and let your existing local campaigns extend there. Then judge Maps placements in the same cost-per-lead math as everything else. A tap on a pin is only worth what the conversation behind it closes.