A Google Assistant Action for a sexy SUV you say? What can it do? Before you get too excited this Action doesn’t actually control the Seltos, it’s more a Q&A, or even an interactive advert you could argue.
To play with Kia’s Seltos Action all you need do is say “OK Google, talk/speak to Kia Seltos” and you’ll find yourself speaking with a familiar Assistant style voice UI. From there you can ask specific questions about the car and find out what’s inside and out.
I have to admit I wasn’t aware of this specific vehicle and it does look sexy. Of course what self respecting car maker wouldn’t include Android Auto as standard across its entire range, and for mixed families there’s even Car Play. Other feature tech includes a Qi wireless charging pad in the front dash, but only in the top GT model from the looks of it.
With a Qi pad we hoped the Android Auto integration would be wireless but it’s not quite ready for prime time so the Seltos has a wired implementation with Kia Australia confirming they are working on Wireless AA for future vehicles. Who knows we may even see embedded Android Automotive from Kia if they are working this closely with Google on marketing.
While an Assistant Action that controlled the vehicle would have been cooler it’s still good to see more partners investing in a voice UI model. You can talk to Kia Seltos on any Google Smart Device or Assistant-enabled mobile phone.
