What does have a Mini car and an English bulldog have in common? Well, not much besides the fact they’ll soon work together to bring the best car experience you’ve ever had. Okay, maybe it looks like a twisted story, but believe me, it’s not. During the Shanghai auto show, Spike, the English Bulldog, will make an appearance in the company’s Concept Aceman before making an appearance in the next Mini production cars. Quite impressive, isn’t it?! Luckily, there’s more to delve into!
A new “intelligent personal assistant” named Spike has been introduced by Mini, one of the most popular British vehicle brands owned currently by the German carmaker BMW. Spike is pretty much modeled after the English Bulldog we all know and love, that has appeared in various previous Mini advertisements. So, later this month, Spike will finally make his debut in style, hoping to steal the spotlight at the Shanghai car show, where he will be installed in the Mini Concept Aceman’s cockpit.
[..] he is not just a design experiment – he is becoming a characterful companion for the user experience; we are now taking Spike into the future as a digital character, explained Oliver Heilmer Mini’s design head.
And the best thing is that Spike features intriguing functions like:
- Silently saying “Ruh-roh” if you actually miss a highway exit;
- Starting to bark uncontrollably if anyone in the car expresses the words “walk” or “walkies;”
- “Controlling” the vehicle whenever possible if there are any squirrels (that’s quite funny!)”.
Make sure you check out below a part of Mini’s cockpit design and, of course, Spike:
How cute is the little bulldog?!
If you find Spike a bit similar to other stuff BMW brought to its cars, it’s because it is! Spike is quite reminiscent of a current BMW function that employs a straightforward voice to direct drivers through the infotainment system’s options. The only difference at Mini cars is that the voice is better because let’s face it, who would resist to a cartoon dog?