Ford and Google to Reinvent the Connected Vehicle Experience

Ford and Google announced a unique six-year partnership that will see the automaker team up with Google to have the search and AI giant become its preferred cloud provider. The partnership will give Ford access to Google’s growing expertise in AI and machine learning to drive and reinvent Ford’s connected vehicle experience.

For Ford owners, those driving Ford and Lincoln vehicles will be come with Android and provide access to Google apps and services. The two companies also announced the establishment of a new collaborative group, Team Upshift that will see two companies collaborate on a series of new projects, personalized consumer experiences and developing new retail experiences.

“As Ford continues the most profound transformation in our history with electrification, connectivity and self-driving, Google and Ford coming together establishes an innovation powerhouse truly able to deliver a superior experience for our customers and modernize our business,” said Jim Farley, president and CEO of Ford in a release that accompanied the announcement.

“From the first moving assembly line to the latest driver-assist technology, Ford has set the pace of innovation for the automotive industry for nearly 120 years,” said Sundar Pichai, CEO of Google and Alphabet. “We’re proud to partner to apply the best of Google’s AI, data analytics, compute and cloud platforms to help transform Ford’s business and build automotive technologies that keep people safe and connected on the road.”

Beginning in 2023, Ford and Lincoln customers will start to see benefits from digital experiences built on the Android OS and Google’s apps and services. Some of these will include:

• With Google Assistant, drivers can keep their eyes on the road and hands on the wheel, by getting things done with just their voice.

• With Google Maps as the vehicles’ primary navigation, drivers can reach their destination faster with information on real-time traffic, automatic rerouting, lane guidance and more.

• With Google Play, drivers will have access to their apps for listening to music, podcasts, audiobooks and more. These apps are optimized and integrated for in-vehicle use.

• Android in the car also enables Ford and third-party developers to build apps that provide a constantly improving and ever-more-personalized ownership experience.

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