Amazon has partnered with Nvidia to develop multimodal AI assistants for vehicles, with automaker testing expected in early 2027.
The collaboration brings together Amazon’s Alexa Custom Assistant (ACA) and Nvidia’s DRIVE AGX automotive computing platform, alongside a suite of AI models, allowing carmakers to handle requests directly within vehicles.
ACA enables manufacturers to create branded voice assistants built on Alexa+ while integrating their own AI agents.
The system combines on-device edge processing with cloud-based functionality.
Local processing is intended to deliver faster response times, while cloud connectivity supports additional services such as music streaming, service bookings and smart home management.
The technology is designed to improve conversational AI by incorporating environmental awareness and contextual understanding.
This allows assistants to interpret group conversations and respond based on in-car conditions.
Amazon Smart Vehicles vice president Anes Hodžić said: “Through our work with Nvidia, we’ve seen the extraordinary capabilities of Nvidia’s technology when paired with Amazon’s Alexa Custom Assistant enabled by multi-modal, multi-model, and multi-agent technology stack on the edge and in the cloud.”
By integrating with the DRIVE AGX platform, the assistant can run optimised AI models within the vehicle while maintaining access to cloud-driven features.
These include Alexa+ capabilities such as shopping, entertainment and service-related interactions, delivered through interfaces customised by automakers.
The initiative aims to provide original equipment manufacturers with a system that blends in-vehicle and cloud-based intelligence, while remaining compatible with existing infotainment setups.
Nvidia automotive vice president Rishi Dhall added: “By combining Amazon's conversational AI with Nvidia's accelerated computing, we can deliver an in-vehicle experience that is both deeply intelligent and inherently private - exactly what automakers need to deploy AI their customers can trust.”
