[“MINI hopes to ‘invigorate’ the emotional connection between people and its cars” with Spike, a new virtual assistant that goes beyond voice to take the form of an animated English bulldog. The short story from Carscoops below has some of the details; the original version includes several more pictures and a 1:36 minute video (also available on YouTube) and the press release is available from BMW’s blog. A related story from Inverse says “GM Thinks ChatGPT Should Be the Future of In-Car Virtual Assistants”:
“Unlike the current applications of ChatGPT, the version that GM is working on won’t just be a simple chatbot. In an example, [Scott] Miller [vice president of software at GM] told Semafor that you would be able to ask the in-car AI assistant how to change a tire and it would show you a how-to video on the display. In another example, you would be able to ask what a light that popped up on your dashboard meant and the virtual assistant could diagnose the issue, offer recommendations on what to do, and even schedule an appointment at an auto repair shop.
Of course, you can find the answers to most of your car trouble in the manual, but asking a chatbot is much faster than flipping through hundreds of pages. The virtual assistant could also add a layer of functionality, helping you figure out your next move when you’re caught in a roadside emergency. Virtual assistants in cars aren’t new, but adding a layer of generative AI could prove to be the next step for this technology that makes it far more useful.
For GM, this ChatGPT-based virtual assistant seems like the natural next step for its sub-brand OnStar, which has since adopted a smartphone app model. However, there are still probably roadside situations where a GM-specific version of Clippy may not be the help you’re looking for.”
–Matthew]
MINI Introduces Spike As The Brand’s New Personal Assistant
MINI’s new personal assistant is an virtual English bulldog and will be used in the next-generation models
By Thanos Pappas
April 10, 2023
Technology in cars is usually helpful but could it also be cute? MINI‘s answer to that question is Spike, an animated dog that doubles as a virtual in-car personal assistant. The mascot will premiere on the touchscreen of the MINI Concept Aceman in Shanghai, before finding its way into the brand’s next-generation models.
Oliver Heilmer, Head of MINI Design described Spike as “a characterful companion for the user experience”. In simpler terms, this is the new MINI Intelligent Personal Assistant, guiding the driver and passengers through all of the infotainment’s features with the help of voice recognition. By using an animated dog instead of a simple voice – as BMW does with its own version of the same technology – MINI hopes to “invigorate” the emotional connection between people and its cars.
Spike will live in the circular OLED touchscreen of the MINI Concept Aceman, but can also take a walk through the rest of the dashboard when he needs a stretch. This will likely not be possible in the production models, although the screen is expected to be carried over in all of them.
If the name of the “four-legged friend” sounds familiar it is because it has been used since MINI’s relaunch back in 2001, before finding its way into the digital world this year. The little dog is inspired by the English Bulldog which is known for its “compact and powerful stature, British heritage, and likable nature”, making it the “perfect animal equivalent of the MINI”.
The dog-equipped MINI Concept Aceman will make its first appearance at the Auto Shanghai in China, between April 18 and 27, together with an art toy (large-format sculpture) of Spike. The company will show more of the personal assistant’s functions and gimmicks through the course of 2023. The first production model to benefit from this tech will probably be the new Countryman later this year, followed by the next-gen Cooper in 2024 and the Aceman in 2025.