Volkswagen Unveils Enhanced Voice Assistant for Cars at CES 2024
Volkswagen has debuted its new enhanced digital voice assistant, powered by ChatGPT, at CES 2024 in Las Vegas. With the influence of OpenAI’s large language model (LLM) growing rapidly, Volkswagen joins the long list of companies developing their own systems or integrating the OpenAI version into their products.
Voice recognition systems in Volkswagen vehicles have historically been subpar, despite the brand’s reputation for great driving experiences. However, the integration of ChatGPT aims to improve the voice recognition experience for users. Starting in spring 2024, Volkswagen’s infotainment systems in select models including the VW 1D3, ID4, ID5, ID7, Tiguan, Passat, and Golf will feature ChatGPT to assist with voice requests and enable various functions such as controlling the infotainment, navigation, and climate settings.
One of the challenges with large language models like ChatGPT is their lack of fundamental understanding of words and phrases. These models operate based on statistical probabilities and tend to group together sequences of words that sound human-like. While they are generally grammatically correct, they may generate responses that sound reasonable but are factually incorrect or nonsensical.
To address this issue, Volkswagen and Cerence, the company behind the voice recognition system, are working to optimize the accuracy of ChatGPT responses when used in vehicles. This is crucial for functions like finding physical addresses or setting the temperature accurately. VW is also prioritizing driver privacy by immediately deleting queries and responses, and anonymizing questions submitted through the cloud to ChatGPT. Additionally, ChatGPT does not have access to vehicle data.
The ChatGPT-enabled voice assistant will initially be available only in new Volkswagen vehicles in Europe, starting in the second quarter of 2024. The company is still evaluating whether to offer this feature in North America.
Overall, Volkswagen’s integration of ChatGPT into its voice assistant system marks a significant step towards improving the user experience and functionality of voice recognition in their vehicles. With privacy measures in place and ongoing efforts to optimize response accuracy, Volkswagen aims to enhance the driving experience for its customers.
