TomTom Partners With Microsoft To Create AI-Based Assistants For Vehicles

JAKARTA - Digital mapping specialist TomTom announced on Tuesday 19 December that it has partnered with tech giant Microsoft to create artificial intelligence (AI) assistants powered by artificial intelligence for vehicles.

The assistant will allow users to "talk naturally with their vehicles" and allow voice interactions with entertainment systems, location searches, and vehicle command systems, the company said.

TomTom, which competes with Google Maps and the world's largest mapping platform HERE, uses various Microsoft services such as Azure OpenAI Service to create this voice assistant.

The Microsoft Azure OpenAI service allows companies to take advantage of the large language model (LLM) of the ChatGPT maker, OpenAI.

This voice assistant can be integrated into other automotive infotainment systems and has also been integrated into the Digital Cockpit TomTom, an open and modular vehicle infotainment platform, the Dutch map maker said.

Finance Director Taco Titulaer told Reuters in October that TomTom saw new opportunities in generative artificial intelligence and was "investing time, money and human resources" in the technology.

TomTom launched a plug-in LLM for ChatGPT in July to allow chatbot users to plan trips and explore new places using their maps.

The company started working with Microsoft in 2016, when they first started providing Azure Maps location services.