Mercedes drivers may soon be able to use ChatGPT for voice control.

Mercedes-Benz said on Thursday that from June 16, US drivers will be able to power some of its premium cars using ChatGPT in a pilot programme.

ChatGPT, which is compatible with around 900,000 vehicles equipped with the automaker's "MBUX" systems, will be downloaded over the air when drivers opt in using a Mercedes app or voice command, according to the firm. Mercedes will monitor how drivers utilise the technology throughout the three-month test.

Mercedes stated that ChatGPT would make its vehicle system's responses sound more genuine and would let drivers ask for destination information among other questions.

In the past, drivers and passengers could use their voices to make a variety of requests, such as turning on seat warmers.

The ChatGPT agreement bodes well for Microsoft, which offers a version of the popular chatbot via its cloud.

The competitor Amazon has long sought to get its voice assistant Alexa into more vehicles, and Microsoft has responded with an investment in ChatGPT inventor OpenAI.

The German carmaker stated in a news release that drivers would not only be able to issue orders with the words "Hey Mercedes," but they will also be able to communicate with their vehicles.

In a second blog post, Microsoft stated that ongoing connections known as plug-ins might one day allow drivers to make restaurant reservations, purchase movie tickets, and perform other activities while driving.

The results of the pilot programme will guide Mercedes' intentions to expand such artificial intelligence to other nations and languages, according to the business. The Mercedes cloud stores, anonymises, and analyses voice data, according to the company.

Rival General Motors said in March that it was looking at using ChatGPT in automobiles as part of a larger collaboration with Microsoft.

(Sources: investing.com, reuters.com)