Kia Advances Software-Defined Vehicle OTA Services with Apps
We’re entering a new age of automobiles this decade. The Kia Corp and parent group Hyundai Motor Group (HMG) have been working a new type of “smart” car. Imagine the Amazon Alexa on wheels, or a mobile Google Home – it connects to everything anyways with the Google Assistant App Kia has released as a new service. The future is about taking all of this hardware and turning it into software. Once we replace the engine with an electric module, all it takes is a CPU, some wires, and an operating system to turn the modern day car into a computer. In October 2022, HMG announced that the group would bring Software Defined Vehicles (SDVs) to the market by 2025. The first model said to use SDV features would be a new flagship of the automaker, the EV9 electric SUV.
The plan is starting to become a whole lot clearer with the latest press release from the Kia News Center. During the second HMG Developer Conference (Nov 16-17, 2022), HMG shared some information about upcoming features, such as over-the-air (OTA) updates and Connected Car Services (CCS) with a Connected Car Operating System (ccOS). Aside from possibly offering autonomous driving technology for Kia and the HMG, there wasn’t a lot to go on prior to this. OTA is a software and consumer customization hits a whole new level with this SDV.
The OTA software found on the Kia EV9 goes beyond updating the vehicle’s core components. Convenience is also a huge selling point for the average consumer, and with the expanded OTA software update capability, consumers can download and update various functions and convenience specifications to customize their interior. Like a smartphone or computer, this is all done wirelessly via communication between the cloud server and the vehicle to enable software updates – no need to go to a service center to install new apps.
What kind of apps? This cloud communication also offers consumers access to the Kia Connect Sore. Here, consumers can download various apps to customize and upgrade their Kia EV9. The Kia Connect Store offers a range of features, such as Remote Smart Parking Assist 2, a remote parking app, and Lighting Pattern, an app that provides five different display modes for the two clusters of small cube lamps attached at the front of the vehicle interior. With a few more years to go before launch, the Kia Connect Store will get a little more high-tech and offer on-demand services that can be personalized to individual lifestyles. Some features already discussed include entertainment-related services like movies, games, and video conferencing.
It all sounds a lot like the digital living space discussed during the 2022 Consumer Electronics Show. Automakers are starting to feature services and software that allows consumers to bring their digital life with them on the road. We’ve seen the technology slowly growing, with the integration of smart speaker Amazon Alexa into some cars, content streaming on others, and all sorts of remote services. Whilst HMG seeks new way to elevate the mobility experience for consumers, and not just apps that change the displays/sound/or lighting, Kia, Hyundai, and Genesis will be providing the first prototype generation of SDV technology in select models. And it all starts with the 2023 Kia EV9.
Get connected and buy a new 2023 Kia EV9 at Miami Lakes Automall today.
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