What AI in electric cars means for drivers

Carmakers now rank artificial intelligence above the battery. In PwC’s first Global Automotive Outlook, 51% of 720 executives named AI among their most important technologies. By comparison, 41% chose batteries and electric powertrains. The survey also found that 47% of automotive companies use AI and advanced technologies today. PwC expects that share to reach 72% by 2030.

Who is buying electric cars now?

Julia Grab, Chief Strategist and Planner, EU Passenger Vehicles at Ford Motor Company, says new buyer preferences explain most of the change in how people consider EVs.

“What has changed most in the past 2 years is who is buying the car, and that’s actually the main driver for the changes in what buyers are asking for rather than just a specific technology in and of itself,” she says.

“EVs have moved from the early adopters and the Nordic markets into the European mainstream, and with that comes a very different customer. They’re not starting with ‘I want an EV’; they’re starting with ‘I want a great looking car that meets my everyday needs at an affordable price, and maybe that car happens to be an EV.'”

“Affordability is absolutely critical, and the much wider choice of BEVs across segments and price points means customers increasingly have the freedom to choose electric without compromising on the total package of what they really want from a vehicle. That shifts the conversation away from simply range and charging toward something more big-picture and emotional: ‘do I love it, can I afford it, and does it work for my life?'”

As a result, technology has to earn its place by making the car easier to live with. That’s where AI is now being tested and implemented.

How is AI changing life inside an electric car?

Google began replacing Google Assistant with Gemini in cars with Google built-in on 30 April, starting in the US. General Motors said the upgrade would reach about 4 million of its vehicles. Similarly, Mercedes-Benz is working with Google Cloud to add conversational search to its MBUX Virtual Assistant.

Stefanie Schieber, Global Industry Leader Automotive at Google, says the aim is a car that understands what the driver needs.

“AI is transforming the car from a connected device into a truly intelligent companion,” she says. “For EV drivers in particular, intelligent navigation can take factors such as charging stops and battery levels into account, making longer journeys easier to plan.”

She adds: “Ultimately, the most exciting role for AI inside the car is not to add more technology to the driving experience, but to make technology feel less visible: more intuitive, more personalized and more helpful.”

Ioana Ogreanu, Managing Director of Vodafone IoT Germany, says connectivity is making that experience more personal. “Vehicles can personalise navigation, entertainment, charging recommendations, and digital services based on driver preferences, creating a far more seamless customer experience,” she says.

Can an electric car get better after you buy it?

Connected EVs send a constant stream of data to the companies that build them. Ogreanu explains that data covers battery health, charging behaviour, energy use and thermal management.

“The real value comes from the ability to act on these insights remotely,” she says. “In some cases, vehicles can achieve improved range, charging performance, and overall efficiency through software enhancements alone.”

She adds: “The most interesting aspect of connected electric vehicles is that performance is no longer fixed at the point of sale.”

Owners are starting to see that data too. In June, Electrify Europe and ZEVA Global launched over-the-air battery health reports that need no workshop visit.

Where else are carmakers using AI?

Alissa Rabe, Senior Industry & YouTube Manager Automotive at Google, points to marketing.

“Google’s AI-powered solutions help car makers better understand consumer intent, find the right audiences and optimize campaigns towards real business outcomes – from generating qualified leads to driving vehicle sales,” she says.

Shoppers are already using AI to research cars. Oliver Wyman estimates that generative AI influenced roughly one in two car purchase decisions in 2025. However, most buyers still complete the purchase offline. The consultancy puts online car sales at 3% to 5% of the total, against earlier forecasts of 25%.

Rabe sees video as the next area of change. “With YouTube playing an important role in how people discover, research and experience cars, the potential of AI-powered video generation is particularly exciting,” she says. “It can help brands develop and adapt creative at greater speed and scale, while opening up entirely new possibilities for storytelling.”

For her, the gains come from linking each stage of the purchase. “For automotive in particular, this is powerful because buying a car is such a highly considered journey,” she says. “The real opportunity is not AI as a standalone technology, but AI that connects inspiration, discovery and decision-making – removing friction for consumers while creating measurable value for the business.”

What’s AI’s role in self-driving cars?

Ogreanu sees connected-car data as the basis for the next step. “Looking ahead, connected-car data will build the foundation for autonomous driving,” she says.

Self-driving is the most visible use of AI in cars, and Europe is currently behind countries including the US and the UAE. The most widespread use of self-driving cars is in ride sharing fleets.

Waymo now offers paid driverless rides in 14 US cities. It passed 500,000 paid rides a week in March. Tesla runs rides without a safety supervisor in six cities in Texas and Florida.

Tesla has also moved to a purpose-built vehicle. On 4 September, it opened public rides in its Cybercab in Austin. The two-seater has no steering wheel or pedals. Only 45 were registered in Texas at launch, although Tesla has built capacity to make 125,000 a year. The US road safety regulator, NHTSA, says it is monitoring the launch.

In the UAE, WeRide and Uber launched fully driverless commercial rides in Abu Dhabi in November 2025. Baidu’s Apollo Go followed with a driverless service in Dubai at the end of March.

In Europe, Uber and Wayve began supervised robotaxi rides in London on 3 September. In Zagreb, Verne launched Europe’s first commercial robotaxi service in April with Pony.ai. It then began fully driverless test rides with invited passengers on 10 September.

Each of these services uses AI in its own way. Waymo combines cameras, lidar and radar with detailed maps of each city. Tesla relies on cameras and neural networks alone. Wayve’s AI Driver learns to drive without high-definition maps, so it can adapt to new streets. Whichever approach proves safest, or becomes dominant across car makers, AI is the technology that makes driverless travel possible.

For private car owners, the wait is longer. Tesla’s FSD (Supervised) is now approved in the Netherlands and a growing number of other EU countries. It’s classed as a driver-assistance system, so the driver stays responsible. The UK government does not expect to approve self-driving technology before the second half of 2027. Mercedes-Benz plans to start adding Wayve’s AI Driver to its cars within two years, initially as an advanced driving assistant. For now, a fully driverless ride means booking a robotaxi.

Will people still need to own a car?

Robotaxis could reduce the number of private cars – a key concern, obviously, for auto manufacturers. However, the evidence points to a slow shift. Cox Automotive’s 2026 Autonomous Vehicle Study found US car ownership steady. It also found that 55% of Americans are open to robotaxis, although only 18% have used one.

Goldman Sachs Research calculates that owning a US car costs at most a little over $1 a mile. By contrast, ride-hailing costs over $2. Any fall in ownership would most likely start in dense city centres, where robotaxis already operate.

Who pays when the AI is driving?

Insurers will help decide how fast self-driving spreads, and reliability drives their pricing. In a study published in December 2024, Swiss Re analysed 25.3 million of Waymo’s driverless miles. It found 88% fewer property damage claims and 92% fewer bodily injury claims than human drivers produce.

Some insurers are already pricing that in. In the US, Lemonade offers 50% off every mile driven on Tesla’s FSD. In the UK, the Automated Vehicles Act builds on a 2018 law that makes the insurer liable first. The insurer can then seek to recover costs from whoever is responsible, which can include the company behind the self-driving system.

What’s needed to get the most out of AI in future?

PwC found that 51% of executives cite talent shortages and 45% cite workforce skills among their biggest barriers to growth. AI and software engineering are among the capabilities they say they need most.

Google, Ford and Vodafone come to the car from different directions, yet they reach the same point. Ford’s Julia Grab says buyers now start with a car they love, can afford and can live with. Google’s Stefanie Schieber wants AI to make technology feel less visible. Vodafone’s Ioana Ogreanu says the key benefits for drivers are “more time and the reduction of driving stress”. For all three, AI adds real value when it makes the car simpler to own and easier to live with.

EVLife will report from the Women Automotive Network Summit Europe on 6 October.