Photo: EVgo
EVgo and Amazon announced a partnership in a press release on Thursday, set to help develop Alexa’s navigation capabilities to charging stations and integrate seamless payment options through the voice assistant.
The system will use PlugShare to help customers find nearby charging stations, along with a comprehensive public electric vehicle (EV) charging map. The setup will integrate the PlugShare API into the Alexa app.
It also lets drivers use the Alexa app to seamlessly pay for charging sessions, register new EVgo accounts, find stations and more. The in-car functionality is coming to Alexa-enabled cars and Amazon’s Echo Auto accessory later in 2023.
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“We want Alexa to be useful for customers in their everyday lives, and EV charging is a great example of a task that can be simplified and made more convenient through the power of AI,” said Anes Hodžić, Amazon Smart Vehicles Vice President. “By partnering with EVgo, we’re bringing Alexa’s AI and multi-modal experiences to improve the EV charging experience for drivers and streamline the process of locating, initiating and paying for a charging session.”
Amazon announced plans to develop a custom Alexa assistant for automakers a couple of years ago, letting auto manufacturers to develop their own digital assistants based off the company’s own Alexa.
EVgo has also announced plans to build a national EV charging network with GM and Pilot, expected to result in around 2,000 charging stalls total.
Amazon also unveiled its new Ring Car Cam at CES, a dual-camera dashcam that can see both the interior and exterior of the vehicle, powered by Alexa.
