BMW Partners with Amazon Alexa

BMW has begun working with Amazon to create the next-generation BMW voice assistant based on Alexa technology.

BMW introduced its voice assistant (BMW Intelligent Personal Assistant) in 2018, and voice interaction has become an increasingly important part of BMW iDrive. The new BMW voice assistant will work with Alexa, providing customers an intelligent assistant to control music, remotely manage their smart homes, add items to shopping lists, or check the weather. Customers can choose to use either the BMW voice assistant and Alexa individually or have both assistants work alongside each other.

"The Alexa technology will enable an even more natural dialogue between driver and vehicle, so drivers can stay focused on the road. This will bring the digital experience to an entirely new level," said Stephan Durach, senior vice president of connected company and development technical operations at BMW Group, in a statement.

"This cooperation with BMW is a great example of what Alexa Custom Assistant was designed for: to make it faster and easier for companies to develop custom intelligent assistants for virtually any device without the cost and complexity of building from the ground up," said Dave Limp, senior vice president of devices and services at Amazon,in a statement.

The first vehicles with the new generation of BMW's voice assistant will launch within the next two years.