Starting from mid-2018, BMW and MINI will be building in native voice command and connectivity support for Amazon’s Alexa virtual assistant, granting customers to access a variety of services, entertainment features and shopping facilities while on the move by simple voice interaction.
Now, BMW claims that compatibility will arrive for “all BMW and MINI models” in spite of some regions not yet having official support from Amazon, limiting the usefulness of the Alexa voice assistant. However, it will be a much larger rollout following the feature availability for drivers of certain in the USA, Germany, and the UK.
As Alexa’s processing is done mostly through Amazon’s cloud service, it requires the BMW Connected hardware - particularly its built-in SIM card - to interact with and deliver actioned responses without the need for a smartphone. And because of this integration with BMW in-car features, Alexa can be used as a conduit to being informed of the vehicle’s state of charge or fuel level, control multimedia, and to plot new routes to destinations.
"By making this step of integrating Alexa into our models from mid-2018, BMW and MINI will form a more intrinsic part of our customers’ digital lifestyles,” remarked Dieter May, Senior Vice President Digital Services and Business Models at the BMW Group. “Voice control first featured in BMW Group cars many years ago, and we are now enhancing its functionality by adding a digital ecosystem, which will open up all sorts of new possibilities that customers can access quickly, easily and safely from their car.”
“We are excited to work with BMW to bring the Alexa experience to their drivers,” said Ned Curic, Vice President, Alexa Automotive. “Using your voice to enjoy content and interact with Alexa makes a great driving experience even better. We can’t wait for BMW customers to try this out.”
While those 3 aforementioned countries will be receiving full Alexa compatibility with all BMWs and MINIs equipped with connectivity services, the rollout to other regions and countries will be predictably staggered.
Even more good news is that Microsoft and Amazon have announced a partnership to mesh together both Alexa and MSFT’s own Cortana digital assistant, creating a considerably more powerful product to take on heavyweights like Apple’s Siri and the Google Assistant. Through this, Alexa will also gain the ability to access calendar, email, and documents used in tandem with Windows 10 and Microsofts’ Office 365 service, something that could be very useful to BMW’s customer base.
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