Volkswagen says it will install ChatGPT in cars to "enrich conversations"

Volkswagen has joined the generative AI bandwagon by announcing plans to install OpenAI’s ChatGPT in its cars starting in the second quarter of 2024.

The chatbot will be available across all Volkswagen models, including the Tiguan, Passat, Golf and the automaker's ID series of electric vehicles. The feature will first roll out in Europe, with a U.S. rollout currently being considered, but plans have yet to be finalized.

Volkswagen is enhancing its IDA in-car voice assistant with ChatGPT to enable more natural communication between car and driver. Owners can use the new super-powerful voice assistant to control basic functions like heating and air conditioning, or answer "common sense questions." (However, given that ChatGPT occasionally makes up random information, users are advised to be cautious and verify before accepting it).

If you're wondering why you need ChatGPT in your car, VW says future features may prove its worth. The company says the direction of development is to "enrich conversations, answer questions, interact in intuitive language, receive vehicle-specific information and more purely hands-free functionality."

Volkswagen promises it won't force users to create new accounts or install any apps. The chatbot is activated using the wake word "HelloIDA" or pressing a button on the steering wheel. In addition, OpenAI will not obtain driving data. VW said questions and answers were "immediately deleted to ensure the highest level of data protection."

Last year, OpenAI said it would release a platform for customizing versions of ChatGPT for specific use cases. These artificial intelligence agents (which OpenAI calls GPT) will be accessible through the company's GPT store.

Most in-car voice assistants currently work in a stilted way, doing things like turning on the seat heater or window defroster, but lack the conversational skills to typically handle more complex navigation requests. False alarms and the need for voice to repeat commands are common. Many automakers rely on options provided by third-party developers, such as Google's Assistant and Amazon's Alexa.

ChatGPT and other large language model chatbots are known to provide false information, and OpenAI is becoming the target of several defamation and copyright infringement lawsuits.

While many automakers announced plans to use generative artificial intelligence and large language models to enhance vehicle performance at the annual CES conference in Las Vegas, Volkswagen is the first to officially adopt chatbots.

Volkswagen said it was able to integrate OpenAI's chatbot into its cars thanks to Cerence, a third-party software company that provides "automation-grade" ChatGPT integration. The company's CerenceChat Pro software will enhance the capabilities of Volkswagen's voice assistant, allowing it to "provide relevant responses to nearly every query imaginable."

While other automakers are "testing" whether ChatGPT is worth using in their cars, it's telling that Volkswagen is going its own way. Although Volkswagen is one of the world's largest automakers, it's not having an easy time in 2023, including disappointing sales growth, software glitches and layoffs. The company is clearly looking for some kind of boost, and jumping on the bandwagon of artificial intelligence seems to be an attempt to give itself the cloak of technological innovation.