German car manufacturer Mercedes-Benz has introduced an update that includes a virtual assistant in the car NFT An AI voice assistant with a gallery and “emotional profiles”.
The company unveiled the updated MBUX Virtual Assistant at the 2024 Consumer Electronics Show (CES) in Las Vegas. The virtual assistant, powered by generative AI, runs on the next-generation Mercedes-Benz Operating System (MB.OS), developed in-house by the automaker.
Billed as “the most human-like interface with Mercedes-Benz” to date, the updated MBUX virtual assistant uses a large language model (LLM) to communicate with the driver using one of four “emotional profiles”. Mercedes-Benz said in an interview with PCMag. He said the virtual assistant can switch between natural, predictive, personalized and empathetic modes.
“With the advancement of artificial intelligence, the Mercedes-Benz of tomorrow will know the driver better than ever before,” Schaefer said. “It enhances and enriches our customers' lives – in their cars and beyond.”
The MBUX assistant learns the driver's preferences, such as automatically turning on the radio station of your choice during the morning commute, or activating seat massagers and dimming lights during nighttime driving.
Mercedes-Benz has announced that it will integrate OpenAI's ChatGPT chatbot with the Mercedes-Benz User Experience (MBUX) voice assistant in June 2023. However, Schaefer said that the final product will not “necessarily” be limited to using ChatGPIT, suggesting that Mercedes-Benz may change it to other chatbots “if we see options that benefit the customer.” That could include using alternate LLMs to provide a better environment in different regions, for example.
Drivers can opt out of the program and the virtual assistant only learns from individual cars, the data is not shared across drivers, Schäfer added.
The updated MBUX virtual assistant will launch in early 2025.
Mercedes-Benz is revamping its navigation and in-car entertainment (ISA) systems. The latter includes the in-car music experience MBUX Sound Drive, which allows music composed by recording artist Will.i.am to “react to the way you drive”.
A new MBUX Collectibles app allows drivers to display their in-car collectibles (NFT) on the vehicle's dashboard, including the brand's NXT NFTs Ethereum blockchain. The firm made headlines last year when the fall of the NXT Icons NFT collection caused its website to crash.
Mercedes-Benz is also using blockchain technology for small-scale applications. In the year In 2020, it announced that it is piloting a blockchain-based project to track CO2 emissions in the cobalt supply chain in partnership with tracking startup Circular.
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