Panasonic to bring smartphone-like Android infotainment system to cars

Panasonic and Qualcomm are teaming up to bring Android to your cars, and no, it’s not Android Auto that we’re talking about. It’s the Android that we all know and love on our smartphones.

From the beginning, our goal was to create an in-vehicle infotainment system that shortened production time, minimized development cost for major OEMs globally, and allowed for more efficient evolutions as time and technology changes in mobility,

says Tom Gebhardt, President of Panasonic Automotive Systems Company of America. And that’s exactly what the company achieved in partnership with Qualcomm. The two companies are looking to build an in-vehicle infotainment (IVI) system using Android Nougat and its vast applications. In fact, Qualcomm even has a special customized chipset for it called the Snapdragon 820Am processor.

Although still at its nascent stage, the concept system will be based on the full smartphone Android operating system, not Android Auto. Powered by Qualcomm’s chipset, which includes integrated X12 LTE modem and Adreno 530 GPU, this isn’t just your average IVI. Panasonic wants a powerful smartphone-like system capable of advanced video processing and multiple displays integrated right inside your car.

Panasonic claims that the new Android-powered IVI, with its integration of Google’s services, will be beyond that of the next two IVI generations ahead. As Patrick Brady, Android Engineering Director, puts it, “Android has evolved into a turn-key automotive platform that enables automakers and suppliers to build next-gen IVI systems.” We see the versatile nature of Android as an operating system once more, and although for now it’s unclear how this will differ from Android Auto, one thing is for sure: this may become the most powerful IVI yet.