At CES 2024, Volkswagen is presenting the first vehicles in which the AI-based chatbot ChatGPT is integrated into its IDA voice assistant.
Cerence Chat Pro is the foundation of the new function, providing intelligent, automotive-grade ChatGPT integration. The new chatbot is offered in conjunction with the latest generation of infotainment in the following models: ID.7, ID.4, ID.5, ID.3, the all-new Tiguan and Passat, and the new Golf.
Volkswagen will be the first volume manufacturer to offer ChatGPT as a standard feature, starting in the second quarter of 2024 in many production vehicles. The company expects that customers will soon have access to the constantly growing AI database in all models equipped with the IDA voice assistant, and will be able to have researched content read out to them while driving.
The voice assistant is activated by saying, “Hello IDA” or pressing the button on the steering wheel. IDA automatically prioritizes whether a vehicle function should be executed, a destination searched or the temperature adjusted. If the request cannot be answered by the Volkswagen system, it is forwarded anonymously to AI and the familiar Volkswagen voice responds.
Enabled by Cerence Chat Pro, the integration of ChatGPT into the backend of the Volkswagen voice assistant offers a multitude of new capabilities. For example, the IDA voice assistant can reportedly be used to control the infotainment, navigation and air-conditioning, or to provide accurate and relevant responses to nearly any query imaginable.
According to the companies, ChatGPT does not gain access to any vehicle data; questions and answers are deleted immediately to ensure the highest level of data protection possible.
Stefan Ortmanns, CEO of Cerence, said, “We are proud to build on our automotive expertise and our long-standing partnership with Volkswagen to offer its customers new innovations that leverage generative AI and large language models – even after they have purchased a vehicle.
“With Cerence Chat Pro, Volkswagen is empowered with an automotive-grade ChatGPT integration that offers unmatched flexibility, customization and ease of deployment while prioritizing security and usability for drivers. As we look to the future, together Volkswagen and Cerence will explore collaboration to design a new, large-language-model-based (LLM) user experience as the foundation of Volkswagen’s next-generation in-car assistant.”
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