The Rise of In-Car Voice Assistants

Voice control in cars isn’t entirely new – basic voice command systems have been around since the early 2000s (remember clunky prompts like “Dial number” or “Play CD”). But those were often limited and frustrating, requiring exact phrases. The game changer has been the infusion of AI and natural language understanding. Today’s car voice assistants – think Apple’s Siri via CarPlay, Google Assistant via Android Auto, Amazon Alexa integrations, or manufacturer-specific ones like Mercedes’ “Hey Mercedes” – can understand more natural speech and do far more than old-school voice commands.

Now, many new vehicles come with a built-in voice assistant triggered by a phrase like “Hey BMW” or “OK Google” (if Android Automotive OS). These systems are backed by cloud computing and AI, allowing a kind of conversational ability. For example, Mercedes-Benz’s MBUX assistant (which you wake with “Hey Mercedes”) can handle requests from “Navigate to 123 Main St” to “I need a coffee” (it will find nearby coffee shops)[37][125]. It even understands follow-ups; you could say “Call Alex,” and if it asks “Which Alex?” you can reply “The second one” and it gets that context. This is thanks to natural language processing (NLP), a branch of AI that enables understanding of intent and context rather than just pre-programmed commands.

Manufacturers are also incorporating cloud AI like ChatGPT to make assistants smarter. In 2023, Mercedes launched a beta where “Hey Mercedes” is augmented with ChatGPT, meaning drivers can have more human-like conversations[126]. Ask it a complex question or to compose a text in a certain style – it can do that, leveraging AI far beyond the car’s onboard knowledge.