Android has been creeping into cars for more than a decade, first with the phone-based Android Auto and later with built-in Android Automotive OS. Even when Android is running on cars, it has not been allowed outside of the infotainment box. That could begin changing soon with Google’s new plans for software-defined vehicles (SDVs), but don’t expect most carmakers to step on the gas right away.
Car companies are notoriously protective of the software running on their vehicles, which has become a core part of the experience as cars have shifted to “computers on wheels.” Part of that is a matter of safety, but the data collected by automotive software is also highly valuable. As a result of everyone going their own way, vehicles have different software stacks that can include incompatible components from myriad suppliers. Google says it can fix this “fragmentation” mess with a more powerful version of Android Automotive OS (AAOS) designed for SDVs.
For better or worse, cars are increasingly reliant on software for new features—for example, remote climate controls or using smart keys on your phone. Google’s car efforts didn’t start there, but they’ve definitely trended in that direction. Early on, the company’s in-car play was Android Auto, which could run on a phone or be projected from a phone to supported car displays. Google eventually dropped the phone-based Auto to focus on the projected Android Auto experience and Android Automotive OS, which runs Android locally on the vehicle. That’s where Google’s latest initiative is focused.
Letting Big Tech interact with a car’s hardware opens a whole can of worms. So, Android Automotive has thus far been limited to infotainment systems to handle mapping and streaming music—all the things you can do with a phone mounted to the dashboard. Google’s next step offers carmakers a full Android Automotive SDV, allowing the embedded Google software to interact with non-safety parts of the car. So the Android-powered screen in a car might be able to control the air conditioning or pipe in driving data to let you know when maintenance is required. However, it won’t be responsible for making sure your intelligent braking or lane-keeping systems work as intended.
Google claims the new AAOS will take pressure off of individual carmakers to provide a good user experience, while also delivering features to drivers more quickly and efficiently with Android OTAs. The locked-down Android Automotive experience has gotten some traction, with companies like Volvo, BMW, Volkswagen, and Rivian using it in at least some vehicles. They’re not all on board with the platform’s SDV future yet, though.
Google says its early work on AAOS SDV includes Renault and Qualcomm. The OS will be released to open source later this year, allowing other automakers to experiment with it. Naturally, they’ll have to go through Google if they want to actually license the services that make it all work.
