AI Virtual Assistant Coming To Next-Gen Mercedes-Benz OS, And More

Mercedes-Benz is amongst a slew of leading automakers present at the Consumer Electronics Show 2024 (CES 2024) in Las Vegas this week.

The annual Consumer Electronics Show 2024 (CES 2024) in Las Vegas just opened its doors earlier today and there’s plenty of big announcements already. Mercedes-Benz is amongst the big brands to do so, and the automaker showed plenty of bold new tech.

Key amongst which is what the German marque promises to be the smartest voice-controlled virtual assistant ever that’s powered by Artificial Intelligence (AI). It will be central to the upcoming new generation Mercedes-Benz OS primed in its upcoming MMA-platformed models.

Coming into its next-gen models is the Mercedes-Benz OS, and it features a novel new AI-powered voice assistant at the heart of things.

Said new operating system is a purpose-built chip-to-cloud operating system that brings a number of diverse functions under one roof. It includes in-car content, charging, maps, car setting controls, and automated driving.

A big part of that will be the MBUX Virtual Assistant, which Mercedes dubs "the most human-like interface with a Mercedes-Benz yet." This will be powered by ChatGPT—similar to what Volkswagen announced at CES 2024 too.

Dubbed as "the most human-like interface with a Mercedes-Benz yet," this new AI-powered virtual assistant was developed jointly with ChatGPT.

According to Mercedes' Chief Technology Officer Markus Schäfer, the system can do more than just follow voice commands. The exec notes the system can have a "dialogue" with users, and it even has the ability to pick up on a user’s mood to respond with "empathy."

Said AI features four personality traits - Natural, Predictive, Personal and Empathetic. These can be adjusted to a user’s personal tastes or situation behind the wheel. The AI projects as a glowing three-pointed star logo with various colour changes and animations to illustrate its state of being.

The latter is pretty neat as it is designed to glow in a certain way to provide warnings as well. "In some cases, hopefully, the assistant predicts already what you want, depending on your moods, the daytime, the location you are in and the circumstances you are in," adds Schäfer.

This AI-powered assistant also has four different “emotions”,  and it can respond to requests based on a user’s mood at the time. Schäfer continues by noting that users can have a constant interaction with their car through this tech.

Also coming soon to Mercedes-Benz screens is the MBUX Surround Navigation 3D visualisation display module powered  using the Unity game engine.

Apart from this AI-powered assistant, Mercedes-Benz is also set to see its next-gen cars adopt the MBUX Surround Navigation 3D visualisation display module. Notably, this tech is set to be powered using the Unity game engine.

This sees the system give a bird’s eye view of other vehicles, trucks, cyclist, as well as pedestrians. The system will also superimpose potential hazards onto the route guidance to help drivers better navigate through difficult urban environments.

The 3D game engine projects "all the sensor data that we're taking from the cameras, the radar, the LIDAR, that really gives the driver situational awareness. It's not only beautiful graphics but also a safe experience,” says Mercedes' Chief Software Officer Magnus Östberg.

Novel new tech feature aside, Mercedes-Benz also announced a series of new partnerships that will see new content heading to MBUX screens soon.

Beyond these, Mercedes-Benz also announced a wide array of partnerships that brings new content - music, movies, and games - into its MBUX screens soon. While no different from what’s already accessible via your smartphone, its native accessibility should enrichen on board experiences.