San Francisco - Luxury car maker Mercedes-Benz has expanded the use of artificial intelligence (AI) and added OpenAI's ChatGPT into the voice control of its vehicles as the next step.

"By adding ChatGPT, voice control via the MBUX Voice Assistant's Hey Mercedes will become even more intuitive. An optional beta programme will start June 16, 2023, in the US for over 9,00,000 vehicles equipped with the MBUX infotainment system," Mercedes-Benz said on Thursday.

Customers can participate via the Mercedes me app or directly from the vehicle using the voice command "Hey Mercedes, I want to join the beta programme".

Moreover, the company said it is integrating ChatGPT through Azure OpenAI Service, leveraging the enterprise-grade capabilities of Microsoft's cloud and AI platform.

"Our beta programme boosts the existing Hey Mercedes functions such as navigation queries, weather requests and others with the capabilities of ChatGPT. This way, we aim to support conversations with natural dialogues and follow-up questions," Markus Schafer, Member of the Board of Management of Mercedes-Benz Group AG, CTO, Development & Procurement, said in a statement.

The rollout of the beta programme will happen over the air.

This integration will let drivers and passengers receive sports and weather updates, have questions answered about their surroundings or even control their smart homes, according to the company.

The automaker also mentioned that users will experience a voice assistant that not only accepts natural voice commands but can also conduct conversations.

Participants will soon be able to ask the Voice Assistant for detailed information about a destination, a recipe suggestion, or a complex question and receive a more comprehensive answer while keeping both hands on the wheel.

Luxury car maker Mercedes-Benz has partnered with Cisco (a digital communications technology company) to introduce the new E-Class sedans with Webex Meetings and Calling and Webex AI audio capabilities -- for employees to connect anytime in meetings.

The companies announced the collaboration at last week's Mercedes-Benz E-Class event and revealed more details at Mobile World Congress (MWC) in Barcelona, Spain, 2023, Engadget reports.

Webex is a web conferencing company led by Cisco, which is based in the US, that develops and sells web conferencing, video conferencing and contact centre as a service application.

"This partnership will help people get work done safely, securely and comfortably in their vehicles," the companies were quoted as saying.

Moreover, the report said that if users attend a meeting while driving, the companies claim to provide "best-in-class noise cancellation" due to Webex's audio intelligence technology.

Meetings and calls will only be available in audio unless users are parked, in which case they will have access to video meetings, AI-powered transcription, content-sharing functions, and emoji reactions.

Further, the report said that there will be a Webex app available in the Mercedes-Benz Car App Store, and the built-in WiFi and cellular data connection means users will not need to bring their phones to the meeting.

Meanwhile, Mercedes-Benz recently received the first Level 3 Autonomy approval for its "DRIVE PILOT" system, a first in the industry in the US.

The luxury car company said that Nevada (a US state) is the first state to confirm the compliance of the system with state regulations.