'Alexa, please make my BMW understand me better'

Voice-controlled features in cars have been hit and miss, and many drivers are familiar with the frustrating “I didn’t quite catch that” response (or similar) from a vehicle’s virtual assistant when you try to change radio stations or input a navigation destination by speaking.

It turns out that teaching computers to understand human commands is a lot more difficult than previously thought, and many built-in car voice assistants haven’t been able to match the effectiveness of Alexa, the virtual assistant service that Amazon has spent years perfecting.

Now BMW will build its next-generation car voice assistant on Alexa technology, the car maker announced at Amazon’s annual Devices and Services launch event this week.

“The Alexa technology will enable an even more natural dialogue between driver and vehicle, so drivers can stay focused on the road. This will bring the digital experience to an entirely new level,” said Stephan Durach, BMW’s senior vice-president connected company and development technical operations.

Dave Limp, Amazon, added: “This co-operation with BMW is a great example of what Alexa Custom Assistant was designed for — to make it faster and easier for companies to develop custom intelligent assistants for virtually any device, without the cost and complexity of building from the ground up.”

The new BMW voice assistant will work in co-operation with Alexa, providing customers the benefits of an intelligent assistant that is the vehicle and services expert, while Alexa provides the familiar experience many customers are already using today — such as the ability to control music, remotely manage their smart home, add items to a shopping list, or check the weather for the day. Customers can still choose to use either the BMW voice assistant and Alexa individually, or have both assistants work alongside each other.

The first vehicles with the new generation of BMW’s voice assistant will launch within the next two years.