Agile*Product*AI

Driven by advances in electrification, autonomy, connectivity, and new ownership models the automotive industry is in the midst of a disruptive transformation. The status quo will not survive . Traditional models that are costly and inflexible lack the speed and agility required to meet expectations customers have for vehicle capabilities and experiences, and partners (brands and suppliers) have for ease of integration and customization. A Software Defined Vehicle (SDV) never stops delighting its occupants. Its future-proof architecture is continuously improved during development, production, delivery, and ownership.  Electric vehicle companies like Tesla, Rivian, Lucid, Fisker and others have embraced this since their inception. They are tech companies that build cars. We are seeing the innovators dilemma play out at scale in realtime and it will be interesting to see which traditional automakers have the fortitude to make the transition and which will cease to exist.

We are just starting on the journey to create software defined vehicles. Think of it as a smarter smart phone on wheels! A good article from voicebot.ai summarizing the latest release with Ford. A few exceprts follow with a link to the full article. The idea behind Car Control is the Teachable AI for cars Alexa feature added at the end of 2021 that lets users decide what phrases will activate Alexa tasks, much like the alternative phrase triggers for Alexa Routines. Different comments can be tied to a chosen action. The training comes from telling Alexa something that isn’t a direct order. Saying, “Alexa, I’m cold,” will prompt the voice assistant to ask if they should turn off the air conditioner or turn up the heat. Or, a driver could say “Alexa, my windshield is foggy,” to trigger the defroster.  The voice commands can still be direct, like asking Alexa to set the temperature to beach weather, having taught the voice assistant that beach weather means 78 degrees, or similar. “We...

I've seen some recent posts in the user groups about eliminating the distinction between developers and testers on teams. One word – Hogwash (that’s the polite version). The best developers I've worked with create beautifully engineered and usually bug-resistant code. They do this with passion and will commit every ounce of their soul to the purpose. Now, if they're a bit more enlightened, they'll like the idea of unit testing and build out a [j|n]unit test suite for their component. Often, here the passion dissipates, and testing isn't quite as complete as you'd like it to be. I've yet to truly experience test-first, but I am sure it’s out there somewhere. Now testers are a different beast entirely. They are devious. They will take this piece of artwork, conspire with others, and meticulously commence punish it in every way conceivable. They will do this over and over again with a fervor that it at times frightening. They can't be stopped in their searc...

Lamborghini's vision is to "move beyond supercars by creating new, unprecedented and exciting experiences." Our collaboration has brought our mutual customers completely new ways to interact with their vehicles that is only now possible using the latest AI and ML technologies. In addition to using voice to interact with What3Words geolocation services, occupants of the car can simply say "Hey Lambo, I am cold" while sprinting around the Nürburgring loop and the temperature will be adjusted accordingly.  From the article below. “Lamborghini is a trailblazer in being the first to implement this system,” said John Scumniotales, Alexa Automotive’s head of product. “They certainly won’t be the last. We’re excited to see how this partnership progresses.” https://www.nytimes.com/2022/01/27/business/lamborghini-huracan-what3words.html

The integration of Artificial Intelligence (AI) in automotive technology is significantly altering the landscape of in-vehicle digital experiences. This transformation is not merely an enhancement but a fundamental shift in how we interact with our vehicles.  When you enter a modern car equipped with AI, the first noticeable change is the personalization of settings. Through AI-powered systems, the vehicle recognizes the driver and automatically adjusts seats, mirrors, climate control, and even media preferences. This level of personalization, achieved through pattern recognition and predictive analytics, ensures a comfortable and tailored driving experience. As you start your journey, AI's role becomes more evident. Vision systems, employing cameras and sensors, provide a 360-degree view around the car. These systems significantly enhance safety by identifying potential hazards, such as pedestrians in blind spots or unexpected obstacles on the road. The AI processes this informati...

They say you live in dog years when your at Amazon. I've certainly found that to be true over the last few years in the Alexa group leading the product team building new products and experiences for the automotive industry. I've needed the 7:1 dog:human ratio to ingest the culture of Amazon and the tech of Alexa! For this blog post, I'll summarize what I've learned about how Alexa works. When you say "Alexa," what exactly happens? It's not just a signal whizzing through the air; it's the culmination of years of artificial intelligence research and development. Let's take a journey through the AI that powers Amazon's Alexa Voice Service, unfolding the layers of technology that make it possible for Alexa to respond with more than just a robotic "I didn't catch that." Picture yourself asking Alexa to play your favorite song. The moment the microphone picks up your voice, a complex process kicks off. The first step is Automatic Speech...

There is a broader context that agile development fits in. We forget about that sometimes. We can apply agile and lean practices to optimize the throughput of our development teams and still fail. For the business to succeed, we got to make sure we are building the right products with the right features. Agile is just a means to an end. If we're not working on the right stuff, our business will fail, and don't be surprised if agile gets blamed! Making sure "you’re working on the right stuff" reaches outside of the software development life cycle. Your team/business/organization needs have some king of demand management practices in place. With effective demand management, you are continuously evaluating and prioritizing incoming requests. That way you’re moving the "right stuff" into product backlogs. The other side of it is evaluating your current products and projects and having the guts to kill/cancel them if they are not returning adequate value to your ...