Earlier this week during its WWDC keynote, Apple announced that nine automakers have committed to introducing a special Siri button into their upcoming vehicles, allowing you to activate your voice-controlled assistant without removing your hands from the steering wheel. However, it seems the Cupertino company forgot to tell some of those manufacturers about its plan.
Apple said all nine automakers would release new vehicles fitted with Siri buttons on the steering wheels within the next year. Following its keynote, Fast Company contacted the nine automakers mentioned to find out more about the plan. To their surprise, one company said it was unsure it would happen within a year, while at least two had no Siri plans at all.
AutoBlog reports:
Audi told Fast Company, which contacted all nine carmakers mentioned by Apple, that it was not sure if the project could be completed in a year. A Chrysler spokesman said the company did not have any plans to announce anything.Toyota was equally as vague: “(T)here are no particular applications planned at this time.”
To me, this suggests that Apple hasn’t lost any of its determination at all since Steve Jobs left the company. It still knows exactly what it wants, and it will do whatever it needs to make that happen. If it wants to install Siri buttons in vehicles, it’s going to happen, whether automakers like it or not.
But of course, it’s unlikely these automakers are going to kick up much of a fuss. After all, a Siri button on your steering wheel actually makes a great deal of sense — providing you’re an iPhone user, of course — and so we wouldn’t be surprised to see more than just nine automakers installing them in the years ahead, just like they have provided smartphone integration in recent years.
Source: Fast Company
Via: AutoBlog
