Volkswagen announced that ChatGPT will be available on its cars and SUVs, making it the first volume manufacturer to offer the AI chatbot as a standard feature by the second quarter of 2024.
The new feature was made possible by Volkswagen's new partnership with Cerence, which created the Cerence Chat Pro.
Volkswagen to Debut Cars With ChatGPT Integration, IDA Voice Assistant, Cerence Chat Pro
In a press release, Volkswagen unveiled its plans to have a ChatGPT integration into its IDA voice assistant. The voice assistant will be responsible for reading out information while driving. On the other hand, the Cerence Chat Pro will provide in-depth information in response to prompts.
"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," the company announced.
To activate ChatGPT on Volkswagen vehicles, simply say "Hello IDA" or press the corresponding button on the steering wheel. The AI assistant is also capable of prioritizing tasks on its own from performing vehicle functions or having the car temperature adjusted.
Volkswagen, ChatGPT Promise Privacy to Any Vehicle Data
In terms of privacy and security, Volkswagen revealed that ChatGPT does not have access to any vehicle data. In addition, all questions and answers will be deleted immediately, ensuring the highest level of data protection.
On the other hand, if a question cannot be answered by the Volkswagen system, the request will be forwarded anonymously to AI which will generate a response.
"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," Cerence CEO, Stefan Ortmanns, shared.
