Google and Porsche engage in discussions about Google Apps access

BERLIN, (Reuters) – Porsche is contemplating fully integrating Google Software into its car cockpit. A source close to the company stated on Thursday. This shift marks a shift of strategy for the newly-listed carmaker.

The deal, which is limited to Porsche, but not for the Volkswagen Group, would give Porsche customers access Google services like Google Maps or Google Assistant without having to connect their car to an Android smartphone.

Google and Porsche spokespersons were not available immediately for comment. Cariad, a spokesperson for Volkswagen’s software division, declined comment.

Lutz Meschke, Porsche’s Chief Financial Officer, stated on a conference phone last October that the company had been in close contact with Google, Apple and Baidu as well as Tencent, Tencent and Alibaba in China after the end of its cooperation in software research and development with Volkswagen’s Cariad unit.

Manager Magazin reported that Porsche had been reluctant to use Google software before because Google demanded too much data.

As software becomes an integral part car design, technology companies such as Amazon and Google are racing to control the dashboards of carmakers.

General Motors, Renault and Nissan, as well as Ford, use embedded Google technology to power their cars via a Google Automotive Services package. This includes features such Google Assistant, Google Maps and Google Assistant.

Some automakers are wary about allowing tech giants unlimited access to connected car data or allowing them to replace the brands of the automakers with their own dashboard displays.

BMW, for instance, said it was “definitely not going down the path” to integrate GAS into its vehicles. A spokesperson stated that the company wanted to “keep hold of the customer interface.”

After its September listing on the stock market, Porsche overtook its parent company as Europe’s most valuable automaker. On Thursday, Porsche reported a 3% increase in deliveries for 2022.

(Reporting by Jan Schwartz and Victoria Waldersee. Rachel More. Additional reporting by Christina Amann. Editing by Miranda Murray. Elaine Hardcastle.