Hyundai Motor Company and SoundHound are developing an intelligent voice assistant designed to give drivers conversational control over vehicle functions, information and connected-home devices.
Hyundai plans to demonstrate the Intelligent Personal Agent at CES 2018 in Las Vegas before introducing the technology in new vehicles as early as 2019.
The system is built on SoundHound’s Houndify artificial intelligence platform and responds to the wake phrase “Hi, Hyundai.” Drivers will be able to make calls, send text messages, search for destinations and music, check the weather and manage their schedules without navigating a screen.
The assistant will also control commonly used vehicle features, including air conditioning, sunroofs and door locks. Its Car-to-Home capability is intended to let drivers operate compatible household electronics through voice commands from the vehicle.
Hyundai says the system is designed to act proactively rather than waiting for every request. It could remind a driver about an upcoming meeting, for example, then recommend a departure time based on current traffic conditions.
“Sophisticated voice recognition and AI integration are core to effectively providing drivers with the massive content and data that future connected vehicles have to offer,” said Paul Choo, director of Hyundai Motor Company’s Infotainment Development Group. “These elements play a key role in delivering connected-car-generated information.”
One sentence, multiple commands
One of the system’s defining features is its ability to recognize more than one instruction in a single sentence.
A driver could ask for the next day’s weather and request that the living-room lights be turned off without separating those tasks into individual commands. The system would identify and process each request independently.
When the assistant receives a question or instruction, it communicates with SoundHound’s AI servers to retrieve information or complete the requested action.
“We spent a decade developing Houndify, the most advanced voice AI platform, to enable partners the ability to create customized experiences for their products,” SoundHound founder and CEO Keyvan Mohajer said. “We are thrilled to work with Hyundai Motor to revolutionize the in-car experience.”
Hyundai plans CES demonstration
Hyundai will demonstrate the Intelligent Personal Agent through a connected-car cockpit at CES in January. A simplified version is also scheduled for testing in the company’s next-generation fuel-cell electric vehicles on public roads in South Korea.
The test system will provide information about local sporting events, including schedules and results. English will be the assistant’s first supported language, with additional languages planned.
The project expands a relationship between Hyundai and SoundHound that began in 2012. Hyundai previously incorporated SoundHound music-recognition technology into Genesis vehicles and plans to include a Korean-language version in the new Veloster scheduled to launch in January.
The Intelligent Personal Agent reflects the auto industry’s growing effort to make increasingly complex connected-car systems usable without demanding more attention from the person behind the wheel. The challenge will be making the assistant conversational enough to help without becoming one more passenger offering unsolicited advice.