Ford has announced its partnership with Tech giant, Google to reinvent the connected vehicle experience. The carmaker aims to accelerate its business transformation plan. This six-year alliance will begin in 2023 under the Team Upshift Banner. During this partnership period, Google will provide Ford with expertise in data utilization, artificial intelligence, and machine learning. Furthermore, from 2023 onwards, all Ford and Lincoln cars will use an Android-based infotainment system. Along with this, they will continue to feature Apple CarPlay. Thus, Ford will be ditching its Sync infotainment system which was developed in partnership with Microsoft. Ford models sold in China will not get these new features because Google services are banned there.
Through this collaboration, both companies seek to implement personalized consumer experiences, ranging from point-of-purchase processes to ownership offers based on data. They also aim to bring more user-friendly and connected vehicle experiences in order to minimize driver distraction. As per Ford Cars, its preferred software cloud provider is Google Cloud mainly because it allows the automaker to use existing data analytics and artificial-intelligence functions to enhance its product development and manufacturing operations. It will provide vehicle owners with real-time notices for scheduled servicing. It will also feature over-the-air software updates.
“From the first moving assembly line to the latest driver-assist technology, Ford has set the pace of innovation for the automotive industry for nearly 120 years. We’re proud to partner to apply the best of Google’s AI, data analytics, compute and cloud platforms to help transform Ford's business and build automotive technologies that keep people safe and connected on the road,” as commented by Sundar Pichai, CEO of Google and Alphabet.
From 2023, we can expect all the Ford and Lincoln models to feature Google Assistant voice control functionality, Google Maps navigation, and the Google Play entertainment interface as standard.
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