Google and Volkswagen Partner on Smartphone AI Assistant
Alphabet’s Google is providing key capabilities for an artificial intelligence assistant for Volkswagen drivers in a smartphone app. This collaboration is a strategic move by Google to enhance its influence in the enterprise AI applications market by offering robust tools for building intelligent systems.
Through this partnership, consumers can interact with Volkswagen’s in-app AI assistant to address a range of vehicle-related queries. For example, users can ask, “How do I change a flat tyre?” to receive step-by-step instructions. Additionally, by pointing their phone cameras at various parts of their vehicle dashboards, users can access relevant information directly on their screens.
At the core of this next-gen assistant are Google’s Gemini large language models (LLMs), advanced programs adept at understanding and generating predictive responses to human language prompts. Alongside these LLMs, the AI assistant leverages Google’s cloud computing capabilities. By training Gemini with a wealth of data from Volkswagen owner’s manuals and instructional YouTube videos on vehicle maintenance, the tool is equipped to deliver precise and contextually accurate information.
Google Cloud CEO Thomas Kurian highlighted the technical sophistication involved in developing this multimodal assistant, which is capable of processing various types of data including text, images, and videos. “The problem looks superficially simple but it’s technically complex,” Kurian noted. He emphasized that the system is far more than just a speech-to-text translation mechanism that searches through manuals. “Most people think what we built is a speech-to-text translation system that then looks up a manual. Absolutely not,” Kurian clarified.
This sophisticated integration reflects a significant leap in providing practical AI solutions for real-world applications, making vehicle maintenance more accessible and intuitive for Volkswagen drivers through the power of AI-driven technology.
