Tesla's Summon function on the Autopilot feature has been combined with Amazon's Echo smart speaker in a Model S hack by a developer. Jason Goecke's weekend project involved Amazon's Alexa voice assistant, Tesla's auto-park function, cloud tools, and some code were combined to pull the electric vehicle (EV) out of his garage.
Goecke reported that he used Amazon Echo's Alexa Skill Kit to trigger the keyword "ask KITT," according to Hot Hardware. The voice command refers to the name of the Knight Rider car.
After the keyword was triggered the event was sent to Amazon Web Services' (AWS) Lambda cloud service. Goecke used Oracle's Application Express (APEX) to build the Lambda function.
The Tesla Golang library's code was used to call the Tesla application program interface (API), which triggers the EV to take action.
Two events take place. The Alexa voice assistant commands the Homelink wireless control system to open the garage door. Then it uses Tesla's Summon function so the Model S automatically pulls out of/ into the garage.
The developer's pet project was done during his free time. However, Goecke is also a cloud supporter who hopes Tesla and CEO Elon Musk will release an open API.
Goecke notes that Tesla has built an excellent platform. However, it must take more steps to build apps that the company has not thought of yet.
Tesla released its Summon function last January for its Model S and Model X electric cars. It is part of the company's autonomous driving suite.
The EV company made a blog post a few months ago suggesting that it has big plans for Summon. It claimed that in the future Tesla will be able to drive cross-country to meet the car's owner, according to BGR.
In related news, the Lexi app brings Alexa to iOS 9.0 devices including iPhones and iPads. The new app provides most of Alexa's functions including smart home controls, ordering Amazon products, and asking the digital assistant basic questions.
The Lexi mobile app is available at Apple's App Store for about $5. It allows owners of iOS devices to talk to Amazon's digital assistant without buying Echo or Echo Dot smart speakers.
Here's Tesla's Autopark/Summon feature: