Infotainment Compute Platform

A collaborative approach to infotainment development.

Vehicles are becoming increasingly defined by software, and there is a growing demand for more interconnectivity and personalisation opportunities. Aptiv addressed the limitations of traditional infotainment systems, which lock into a proprietary operating system at the time of the vehicle’s development and remain fixed for the life of the car. Aptiv’s vehicle infotainment solution is powered by Android’s Automotive Operating System which has Google apps and services built-in.

By enabling Google Automotive Services in the system, vehicle owners can start with a fresh system every day if they wish. They can download apps to customise their experience as they do with their smartphones. Relying on software which users are already familiar with lowers the learning curve, and allows consumers to enjoy the benefits right from the start.

The new Android automotive-based platform acts as its own device, connected to a user’s digital ecosystem – for example, the user’s Google account. It does not require a smartphone to be present; instead it gets the user’s contacts, music playlists and more directly from the cloud. Consumers can access both familiar apps, and a growing variety of embedded apps and services. Consumers get continuously updated security and operating system functions, and they gain the opportunity to take advantage of new after-production services.

As consumers demand more from infotainment systems and connectivity becomes more ubiquitous, the on-board capabilities of the vehicle will increasingly merge with off-board capabilities in the cloud. With an automated update infrastructure and the right systems integration expertise, these software-defined platforms are well positioned to take advantage of 5G and other wireless technologies to bring a wide variety of applications to the vehicle through a broad ecosystem. As a result, powerful cockpit domain controllers fully integrated with these leading service platforms will become the digital hub of the connected vehicle.