Stellantis and Amazon Announce New Agreements on Smart Cockpits, Staff Upskilling, and Car Development

Stellantis and Amazon have announced a series of global, multi-year agreements that will deploy Amazon’s technology and software expertise across Stellantis’ organization, including in-car connectivity.

The new agreements will see Amazon Devices, Amazon Web Services (AWS), and Amazon Last Mile know-how being used to help Stellantis “shift to become a sustainable mobility tech company.”

“Working together with Amazon is an integral part of our capability building roadmap, based on both developing internal competencies and decisive collaborations with tech leaders, and it will bring significant expertise to one of our key technology platforms, STLA SmartCockpit,” says Carlos Tavares, CEO of Stellantis.

“By leveraging artificial intelligence and cloud solutions, we will transform our vehicles into personalized living spaces and enhance the overall customer experience, making our vehicles the most wanted, most captivating place to be, even when not driving.”

The proposed collaboration between the two companies will bring together Amazon’s know-how in digital experiences, cloud computing, AI, and machine learning and Stellantis’ vehicle engineering expertise across its 14 brands. 

STLA SmartCockpit Development

The first point of collaboration between the two companies comes with STLA SmartCockpit. The two companies will work together to deliver software to run in “millions of Stellantis vehicles globally starting in 2024.” 

This smart cockpit tech will use Amazon products and solutions purpose-built for use in vehicles, as well as remaining flexible enough to offer vehicle- and brand-specific experiences. 

“The software-defined platform will seamlessly integrate with customers’ digital lives,” reads a press release, “to create personalized, intuitive in-vehicle experiences through AI-enhanced applications for entertainment, Alexa-enabled voice assistance, navigation, vehicle maintenance, ecommerce marketplaces, and payment services.”

The services will be available to drivers through an app store and will adapt to driver behaviour and interests.

Chrysler Pacifica minivan drivers, for example, could receive a family trip planner that recommends media content, points of interest, restaurants, and “other fun stops along the route.” Jeep vehicles, meanwhile, could come with a digital off-roading coach.

Development work on the STLA SmartCockpit will also leverage the collaboration announced last year between Stellantis and Foxconn.

AWS to Power Stellantis Connectivity

The second agreement sees Stellantis chose AWS as its preferred cloud provider for vehicle platforms. This, of course, will help to support the STLA SmartCockpit features, as well as other services.

Stellantis will migrate its current vehicle data pipeline across its brands and around the world into a cloud-based data mesh. The global automaker is also hoping to improve its time-to-market for new digital products using AWS machine learning to “deliver greater personalization and more accurate predictive maintenance.”

Similarly, Amazon and Stellantis are working together to develop a cloud-based product development environment that, by automating workflows, should improve software development and testing, high-performance simulations, machine learning model training, and data collection and analysis.

Staff Upskilling

Stellantis recently announced a new Software Academy to upskill and reskill existing employees and, as part of this new initiative, Amazon will help create the Agile-Auto Software and Data Academy, which will cover software, data and cloud technology.

Stellantis will also train more than 5,000 developers and engineers by 2024 in AWS-related cloud technologies to accelerate its transformation into a data-driven enterprise in the cloud.

Amazon’s Sustainable Delivery Network

Since 2018, Amazon has been using tens of thousands of Stellantis-made light commercial vehicles (LCVs).

However, Amazon will start to use Stellantis’ new Ram ProMaster Battery Electric Vehicle (BEV) across the US when it launches in 2023.

The two companies worked together to design the vehicle with the unique demands of last-mile deliveries in mind. 

We wouldn’t expect these announcements to be the last you hear of Amazon and Stellantis working together, either. Later this year, for example, the new Jeep Wagoneer and Grand Wagoneer will become the first cars to use the Amazon Fire TV experience.