Volkswagen unveiled a groundbreaking leap in automotive technology at the CES 2024 electronics trade fair, announcing the integration of ChatGPT, a conversational AI, into its vehicles.
Scheduled for release in North America and Europe by the second quarter of the year, this innovation promises a seamless interaction between drivers and their cars through natural language dialogue.
Enabled by Cerence Chat Pro, the integration of ChatGPT into the backend of the Volkswagen voice assistant offers a multitude of new capabilities that go far beyond the previous voice control. For example, the IDA voice assistant can be used to control the infotainment, navigation, and air conditioning, or to answer general knowledge questions.
In the future, AI will provide additional information in response to questions that go beyond this as part of its continuously expanding capabilities. This can be helpful on many levels during a car journey: Enriching conversations, clearing up questions, interacting in intuitive language, receiving vehicle-specific information, and much more – purely hands-free.
ChatGPT does not gain access to any vehicle data; questions and answers are deleted immediately to ensure the highest possible level of data protection. This is facilitated by Cerence Chat Pro, which leverages a multitude of sources, including ChatGPT, to enable IDA to provide accurate and relevant responses to nearly every query imaginable. The feature also prioritises security and seamless integration with IDA’s myriad capabilities, delivering ease of use for drivers.
During the presentation in Las Vegas, Volkswagen showcased the capabilities of ChatGPT, demonstrating its capacity to engage in dynamic conversations with users. Executives from Volkswagen and Cerence, Volkswagen’s partner in this venture, revealed that the AI can comprehend and respond to a diverse range of requests, from adjusting the car’s temperature upon hearing “I’m feeling cold” to displaying nearby dining options when prompted with requests like “I want butter chicken.”
Kai Gruenitz, the board member for technical development at Volkswagen, highlighted the significance of this advancement, emphasizing that customers can now manipulate various car functions without lifting a finger. “Our customers don’t want to manually adjust their seats… they want to use speech dialogue systems,” Gruenitz affirmed during an interview with Reuters at the CES trade fair.
While some critics suggest that integrating generative AI into vehicles falls short of earlier expectations, especially regarding fully autonomous vehicles, automakers like Volkswagen remain optimistic about the transformative potential of such technologies.
Gruenitz defended the move, highlighting the practical implications for users, stating, “So if you have Apple CarPlay or Android or something, you are not able to adjust functionalities inside of the vehicle. That’s the next step… I think what our customers are really looking for is seamless, intuitive usage of their car.”
This groundbreaking integration marks Volkswagen as the first major automaker to standardize such advanced AI technology in its compact segment cars. General Motors previously announced similar initiatives last March, hinting at the development of a virtual personal assistant using AI models akin to ChatGPT.
Additionally, Mercedes-Benz, through its “MBUX” system, conducted a trial program last June, allowing nearly 900,000 vehicles to download ChatGPT. The company envisions a future where users can accomplish tasks like making reservations while on the move, further blurring the lines between automotive and digital experiences.
