Volvo announces new impressive technology at this year's Consumer Electronics Show

Volvo made three major announcements at this year's Consumer Electronics Show in Las Vegas. The mecca of new technology saw Volvo announce deepening partnerships with three companies that already offer some of the technology that you use every day in your Volvo vehicle. Volvo will be continuing with Google, Luminar, and Qualcomm to develop better infotainment systems as well as enhance autonomous driving capability.

Self-Driving Capability

The partnership with Luminar aims to develop improved autonomous driving capability which will be featured in a new Volvo offering called Ride Pilot.  The latter will begin testing in California this month and is already planned as an offered option on the upcoming Volvo fully electric SUV. Ride pilot is an autonomous driving technology that allows hands-free driving and uses 24 sensors including Luminar’s LiDAR technology.

“We are proud to announce the planned US launch of our first truly unsupervised autonomous driving feature, as we look to set a new industry standard for autonomy without compromising safety,” said Mats Moberg, head of research and development at Volvo Cars. “Having Zenseact’s brand new AD software and Luminar’s LiDAR standard in our new fully electric SUV is a game-changer for Volvo Cars, as well as for automotive safety and autonomous driving.”

Improved Infotainment

Volvo announced a deepened partnership with Google as well which is already behind the current Android-based Volvo infotainment system.  The continued partnership with Google will allow for more features such as YouTube playback as well as a new app which allows Volvo electric vehicle drivers to get the most out of their carbon emission reducing vehicles.

“Volvo Car Group was first to introduce Google technology and services in our cars and we are now looking to be the first to integrate fully with Google Assistant-enabled devices – it is a natural next step in our partnership with Google,” said Henrik Green, chief product officer at Volvo Cars. “This integration allows us to improve the customer experience immensely, as it gives customers the possibility to easily and securely manage their car while at home or on the go, through any personal device that has Google Assistant.”

Lastly, Volvo will team up with Qualcomm to improve the performance of its infotainment system, making it quicker and more responsive.