In connected car news are Honda, Google, Geotab, Agero, Privacy4Cars, Guerilla Semi and Veoneer.
Honda Accord’s First Google Built-in
Stacked with must-have technology, the all-new 2023 Honda Accord arrives at dealers next month featuring Honda’s first integration of Google built-in for seamless on-the-go connectivity. Standard on the top-line Accord Touring, apps like Google Assistant, Google Maps, and more on Google Play, are available with Google built-in, for a connected, personalized and more streamlined driving experience.
In addition to the embedded Google apps, a number of intuitive technologies have been smartly integrated as standard features in the Accord Touring, including: a 10.2-inch digital driver instrumentation display, 12.3-inch center touchscreen (Honda’s largest ever) with Apple CarPlay® and Android Auto™2 compatibility, 6-inch head-up display, Qi-compatible 15W wireless smartphone charging and a 12-speaker Bose premium audio system. All 2023 Accords come standard with expanded and improved Honda Sensing® safety and driver-assistive technology with its new front sensor camera and radar system. And all Accords benefit from fast and secure Over the Air (OTA) software updates to key vehicle computer modules, enhancing functionality and capability.
With Google Assistant, users can get things done while keeping their eyes on the road and their hands on the wheel. Talk to Google to easily call or text a friend, set reminders, or even change the temperature in the car. Users can also navigate to the next destination or look up what’s nearby. For example, Google Assistant enables users to set their destination in Google Maps using just their voice, with the route map then displayed in the instrument cluster.
Drivers can also control their media by asking Google to skip to the next track or rewind a podcast using their favorite media apps with just their voice. Google Play enables users to download various 3rd-party apps for music, podcasts and audiobooks, just like they would on their smartphone.
Geotab Updates Roadside Services with Agero
Agero, whose leading B2B software and services enable auto manufacturers, insurers, fleets and others to support their customers at every stage of vehicle ownership, and Geotab, a global leader in IoT and connected transportation, announced that roadside assistance services powered by Agero are now available to the fleet telematics company’s customers. As part of its mission to connect telematics to businesses and make our roads safer for everyone, Geotab’s updated Roadside Add-In gives fleets fast and easy access to help delivered by a trusted name in roadside assistance.
Geotab’s Roadside Add-In leverages Agero’s curated third-party network of digitally enabled light, medium and heavy duty service providers. By qualifying, monitoring, and continuously measuring these providers against key performance metrics, Agero blends data analytics, territory and job optimization, and relationship management to ensure dispatch of the correct provider vehicle with the required equipment, which increases vehicle uptime and improves fleet productivity. With more than two decades of experience harnessing telematics technology, Agero’s emphasis on transparency and digitally optimized experiences keep drivers informed on the current status of their request, including real-time updates on estimated arrival time, live truck tracking on a map and customizable SMS alerts.
“Fleets simply cannot afford to leave vehicles stranded on the side of the road. No matter where our clients’ vehicles travel, it’s critical to their businesses that they remain up and running – even after a breakdown,” said Louis De Jong, Chief Revenue Officer with Geotab. “During our initial assessment and pilot program with Agero, we were impressed by the capabilities of the platform and the outstanding product collaboration and overall partnership. We were pleased with the results of the pilot program and look forward to building out our current offering further to support our customers across the globe.”
The Geotab Roadside Add-In, which is available via the Geotab Marketplace, provides services such as towing, locksmith, battery boost, fuel delivery, flat tire change and more, for light-duty vehicles in the U.S. and Canada.
“Fleet vehicles are on the road, all day, every day, and all those extra miles mean they are four times more likely to experience a roadside event than your typical passenger car,” said Jason Alexander, Vice President of Client Engagement for Agero. “With vehicle breakdowns costing drivers and businesses an estimated $9 billion each year, Geotab recognizes the importance of Agero’s expertise supporting its roadside program. We are thrilled to offer Geotab’s fleet customers the support they need to get back on the road after experiencing a breakdown event.”
In August 2022, Geotab launched an updated version of its Roadside Add-In integrated with Agero’s services. This version is now available to its more than one million ProPlus subscribers following several months of successful pilot program testing.
Privacy4Cars New Financing
Privacy4Cars, the first privacy-tech company focused on identifying the challenges posed by vehicle data and creating solutions to better protect consumers, announced it closed a new financing round. The Presidio Group’s CEO, Brodie Cobb, joined Venture capitalists FM Capital and Automotive Ventures (who led Privacy4Cars’ successful Series A round in August 2021) in injecting additional growth capital ahead of a wave of significant regulatory changes coming into effect.
“With state associations and industry organizations increasingly speaking about the need to delete consumer personal information from vehicles, raising this capital on the eve of many 2023 regulatory changes (including new privacy laws in five states and the new Safeguards Rule at the federal level) gives us the confidence we can meet the rapidly growing need dealerships, auto finance companies, and fleets have to step up their compliance programs,” said Andrea Amico, Privacy4Cars Founder and CEO. “This capital will also help us expand internationally, especially in the EU where deleting data from cars is mandatory under GDPR, and Canada where Quebec’s new Bill 64 – with its very steep fines for non-compliance is a game changer for privacy.”
Privacy4Cars data deletion solution to clear consumer Personal Information (home address, garage codes, text messages, and much more) from vehicles exchanging hands was recently awarded a fourth patent, underlying the company’s role as the leading innovator in the vehicle privacy space. Its data deletion solution is regarded in the wholesale and retail automotive channels as the most simple, efficient, effective, and auditable solution to meet increasing regulatory requirements and protect consumers.
“The pace of change in the automotive industry is accelerating, with more data being collected from vehicles,” said Steve Greenfield, Automotive Ventures Founder and CEO. “Privacy4Cars is uniquely positioned to help industry participants protect themselves from exposure to privacy issues associated with data collection, regulation and compliance.”
The funding will allow Privacy4Cars to grow its sales and marketing channels and keep building its suite of vehicle data privacy, safety, security, and compliance solutions to deliver on its broader mission of Driving Privacy across the globe.
Automaker Buys into Guerrilla Semi
Guerrilla RF, Inc. (OTCQX: GUER) (the “Company”), an innovative fabless semiconductor company, announced that it has received a purchase order for ultra-low noise amplifiers for one of the world’s leading electric automobile manufacturers. The shipments are expected to commence in March 2023 and continue through November 2023, generating revenue of approximately $580,000 during that period. These ultra-low noise amplifiers are designed for automotive satellite radio multi-stage LNAs, signal boosters, and GPS applications.
Veoneer’s RCS Gets Contract
Veoneer’s Restraint Control Systems (RCS) business has been awarded a significant, long-term contract to deliver its market-leading next-generation product to one of North America’s largest OEMs. In 2026, Veoneer will begin delivering the restraint control system to four of the North American OEM’s vehicle platforms, including its electric vehicles.
Veoneer’s Restraint Control Systems (RCS) trigger the vehicle’s passive safety systems, such as tightening safety belts and deploying airbags, when a crash cannot be avoided. Veoneer’s Restraint Control System has scalable sensing and actuation capabilities with a platform design that is compatible with future electric vehicle and autonomous vehicle architectures.
Veoneer RCS order intake for 2022 has nearly returned to its record levels from before the automotive industry slowdown tied to the global pandemic. “Landing the biggest business award ever is truly an amazing achievement that demonstrates the technical strength and innovation of our next-generation products,” says Robert Bisciotti, EVP Product Area RCS. “I am very proud as this is an acknowledgment of an excellent customer relationship and the value they place in our team.”