Harman has announced a new partnership with Cariad, the vehicle software division of the Volkswagen Group, to strike new cross-industry collaborations that will bring new apps to vehicles spanning the Group’s brand portfolio.
The partnership will help launch more than 70 new apps (depending on the model and market) in the Group Application Store, the in-vehicle app market for cars under the Volkswagen Group brands. This store integrates the Harman Ignite Store – the company’s infotainment solution that allows OEMs to maintain control over third-party content, the user experience, and their relationship with the end user. The Group highlighted that Audi has already implemented its new app store in select models and regions from MY24 onwards and will be integrating it into the new Q6 e-tron in August. While additional Volkswagen Group brands will equip the store in their future vehicles, the scope and launch window for this expansion have not yet been shared.
Among the new apps to be added to the Group Application Store through the new partnership are Booking.com, Eventseeker, Livil, Shelly Smart Control, and Tennis TV. TheBooking.com app helps users quickly locate and book cheap hotels or apartments, while also scheduling flights, rental cars, and more. Eventseeker offers a personalized in-car event service that helps minimize search time and maximize discovery, with detailed information on concerts, sports, theater, comedy, festivals, and cultural events in many cities. The app also utilizes the user’s music preferences to recommend nearby events tailored to their interests.
Livil’s ‘In-Car Messenger’ groups together the user’s preferred communication and work channels into a single, integrated, app – leveraging generative AI to streamline, and semi-automate, the driver’s typical communication processes. The in-vehicle Shelly Smart Control app provides a seamless IoT experience for enhanced automation control and precise monitoring of Shelly-branded devices around the world. This functionality allows users to keep track of their current energy usage and receive a forecast of their monthly electricity bills.
Tennis TV is a direct-to-consumer tennis streaming service that allows users to stream matches from every ATP Tour tournament. Activated through a paid subscription, users can live stream and replay up to 2,500 matches per year, while match highlights, behind the scenes content, and ‘classic’ matches dating back to 1990 are also available on-demand.
In addition to these new apps, Harman announced further collaborations with Bloomberg and Microsoft that will help bring even more apps to the Group Application Store in the future. Here, the company will work with Bloomberg to bring its multimedia content app, which includes Bloomberg Radio, podcasts, and text-to-audio new stories from the Bloomberg website, on display screens in compatible models. With Microsoft, Harman will develop a Microsoft Teams app for the vehicle. Based on a web conferencing app built by Harman, the app will help drivers connect to Teams meetings directly through their in-vehicle calendar.
The Harman Ignite Store, itself, is a platform compliant with Android Automotive standards that connects OEMs with developers to provide tailored in-vehicle digital experiences.? This, in turn, allows consumers to connect with their preferred digital services in the car.
