San Francisco, Jun 16 (IANS): Luxury car maker Mercedes-Benz has expanded the use of artificial intelligence (AI) and added OpenAI's ChatGPT into the voice control of its vehicles as the next step.

"By adding ChatGPT, voice control via the MBUX Voice Assistant's Hey Mercedes will become even more intuitive. An optional beta programme will start June 16, 2023, in the US for over 9,00,000 vehicles equipped with the MBUX infotainment system," Mercedes-Benz said on Thursday.

Customers can participate via the Mercedes me app or directly from the vehicle using the voice command "Hey Mercedes, I want to join the beta programme".

Moreover, the company said it is integrating ChatGPT through Azure OpenAI Service, leveraging the enterprise-grade capabilities of Microsoft's cloud and AI platform.

"Our beta programme boosts the existing Hey Mercedes functions such as navigation queries, weather requests and others with the capabilities of ChatGPT. This way, we aim to support conversations with natural dialogues and follow-up questions," Markus Schafer, Member of the Board of Management of Mercedes-Benz Group AG, CTO, Development & Procurement, said in a statement.

The rollout of the beta programme will happen over the air.

This integration will let drivers and passengers receive sports and weather updates, have questions answered about their surroundings or even control their smart homes, according to the company.

The automaker also mentioned that users will experience a voice assistant that not only accepts natural voice commands but can also conduct conversations.

Participants will soon be able to ask the Voice Assistant for detailed information about a destination, a recipe suggestion, or a complex question and receive a more comprehensive answer while keeping both hands on the wheel.