Tesla’s new voice assistant and Amazon Music ready to hit the road

Recently uncovered code hints at the imminent arrival of Tesla's own voice assistant and the long-awaited addition of Amazon Music streaming to the onboard entertainment system.

Known for regularly adding features with over-the-air updates, Tesla is now building a native voice assistant into its vehicles. It aligns perfectly with CEO Elon Musk's vision of a seamless, hands-free driving experience, allowing drivers to control a multitude of functions simply by speaking.

Other (than the release notes) stuff from 2024.14.3
- Amazon music playback support
- beginning of what looks like "tesla voice assistant" that would be activated by a wakeword-? (Aka car always listening for it), narrated by "Jenny Neutral" voice by Microsoft.

— green (@greentheonly) May 1, 2024

How Tesla's assistant will perform remains to be seen, but code-digging by Tesla enthusiast and hacker 'Green' suggests it will be responding to a particular "wake word." That means no more fumbling for a button (not that Teslas have many of those) - say the word, and your Tesla could adjust the cabin temperature, change the music, or even navigate to your favorite coffee shop.

The update also signals the arrival of Amazon Music to Tesla's audio repertoire. This follows hot on the heels of the recent Audible app integration, further solidifying the Amazon connection.

Along with increased driver convenience, Tesla appears to be honing in on safety features as well. A new "Restricted Drivers" setting suggests added safeguards potentially aimed at novice drivers.