Automakers of all types have largely aligned on touchscreen and voice control as the primary modalities for infotainment HMI. While touch-and-voice-centric HMI has achieved a majority market penetration in all major markets, China in particular spearheads voice as the primary modality in many verticals.

“Car drivers can currently make in-vehicle payments by using applications such as Alexa, Xevo Market or the Banma platform to purchase fuel, food, or pay for parking,” said Mike Ramsey, research vice president at Gartner. “The types of services available will continue to increase as automakers, merchant brands and services, and software suppliers’ partnerships proliferate.”

Given that a consumer's technology experience is highly predictive of their future technology desire and brand loyalty, automakers should carefully examine the user experience and provide customers with useful, reliable and valuable features. As always, the consumer will remain the ultimate judge for determining the value of technology and what should be incorporated into their next vehicle.