In 2017, Samsung acquired HARMAN International looking at its potential in the automobile and audio space. Now, the company is expanding its presence in the automobile market briskly. Volkswagen Group has announced that it has developed an app store for all its cars in partnership with Harman.
Volkswagen Group, the world's second-biggest car manufacturer, is designing the unified software stack for all the cars under its brand, including Audi, Bentley, Lamborghini, Porsche, Seat, Skoda, and Volkswagen. This software platform will govern the company's vehicles for years to come. Based on Android Automotive OS, the software platform will run on the company's in-car infotainment system, aptly called One.Infotainment. And the official app store for the infotainment platform has been developed in collaboration with Samsung Electronics subsidiary Harman.
Made in collaboration with Samsung's Harman, Volkswagen's new software platform brings lots of apps
The app store will feature a lot of familiar apps for EV charging, gaming, music and podcast streaming, news, parking, smart home integration, social media, video conferencing, weather, and more. The first set of apps on the store includes Amazon Music, Spotify, The Weather Channel, Tidal Music, TikTok, Vivaldi, and Yelp. These apps will reportedly be designed with UX that's safe for car use. The Volkswagen Group is in talks with Google to bring native Google Maps navigation.
The new app store will be released first to Audi and Volkswagen cars and then to models from Bentley, Lamborghini, and Porsche. It will first appear in Audi's 2023 lineup, including the A4/A5, Q5, A6/A7, A8, and Q8 E-Tron, in Canada, Europe, and Mexico this summer. Audi Q6 E-Tron and Porsche Macan will also get this new platform and an improved driver assistance system later this year.
The Volkswagen Group wants to become the world's biggest EV car brand, and if it succeeds, it will be a huge win for Samsung Electronics. Samsung already offers a lot of hardware to the Volkswagen Group, including automotive-grade screens, processors, memory, and batteries.
Dirk Hilgenberg, the CEO of Cariad, VW Group's in-house software division, said, “It's a new level of digital experiences we want to show. With regard to third-party app companies, “We can combine and leverage with each other creating an immersive experience, especially as far as gaming, relaxing is concerned.“
