“In Car WeChat” is coming

WeChat, the most popular and most used super APP in China, is now about to launch an extended product: “In Car WeChat” APP for car system this year.

Here is the newest information about it:

Message and Voice Call:

The whole interaction between user and WeChat will be done through voice control: The user can tell weChat to find your contact person and call him or “write” him a message.  Coming messages will be read out by WeChat directly, Pick up or hang up incoming calls will also be operated by voice control.  

Real Time Location:

Users are now able to share their location with contacts in WeChat. This feature is directly linked into the car’s navigation system. This allows the driver to plan a route based on the location sent by their contacts in WeChat without using the phone.

POI:

User centered POI is the key word for this feature. According to WeChat, they are able to build user profiles and thus know better the exact need of the user. Based on this information, they will be able to give customized recommendation, e.g. suitable restaurants, nearby gas / charging station and real time price etc..

Mobile Pay: 

WeChat already has the wallet feature, with which users can pay for almost everything in China. This feature will also be included to the in Car system, it can be used for e.g. paying for gas.

We will follow the updates and keep on posting relevant information on our website.

Author: Yue Liu, Spiegel Institut Mannheim