Google is said to have joined hands with 4 of the top automobile manufacturers – Audi, Honda, General Motors (GM) and Hyundai – along with the renowned GPU chipset manufacturing giant, NVIDIA, to bring Android powered infotainment for vehicles.
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As we move ahead in time, technology continues to seep in every aspect of our life. And the CES 2014 was a witness to that fact, in many ways. In an expected yet quietly surprising announcement, Google is said to have joined hands with 4 of the top automobile manufacturers – Audi, Honda, General Motors (GM) and Hyundai – along with the renowned GPU chipset manufacturing giant, NVIDIA, to bring Android powered infotainment for vehicles. Named the Open Automotive Alliance (OAA), this partnership between Google and the automobile giants is an effort to introduce the Android experience into vehicles. This project holds much significance because Android being a highly customizable and open platform will drive innovation towards providing far more sophisticated safety technology for road safety.
“The OAA is dedicated to a common platform that will drive innovation, and make technology in the car safer and more intuitive for everyone,” said an Open Automotive Alliance (OAA) spokesperson at the announcement. Speaking further, they also spoke about the advantages of choosing Android as the platform, given that “It’s open development model and common platform will allow automakers to more easily bring cutting-edge technology to their drivers, and create new opportunities for developers to deliver powerful experiences for drivers and passengers in a safe and scalable way.”
The union of Android with automobiles is going to create a universe of opportunities for developers and users alike. Driver assistance, communication, road safety, in-car entertainment, navigation are just some of the features which Android developers would be working on, once the project begins to take a more concrete shape.
In retrospect, one can’t help but think of the possible safety hazards that may arise when drivers are busy updating Facebook or playing games on the road. However, OAA has stressed on the importance of road safety when it comes to in-car entertainment tech. According to reports, the OAA are working in sync with government agencies like the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) to focus on building a smart car experience that will give drivers the assistance that they are looking for, without disrupting their focus on the road itself.
Smart tech for cars is not unheard of. Previously, Audi has been associating with Google for satellite and Street. Ford has been working in close association with Microsoft on its Sync technology for Ford cars called FordSync.
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