Instead of battling with their car's own—and often inferior—voice command system, drivers will soon be able to summon Alexa and ask about navigation, media, weather, and more.

Amazon promised that, and this week, it made the Alexa Auto SDK (software development kit) available for anyone to download.

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In addition to the usual Alexa skills, like asking about news headlines and weather forecasts, controlling smart home devices, and asking general knowledge questions, Alexa Auto includes car-friendly features like navigation and local search—handy if you need to find a gas station.

Some car manufacturers—including Ford, BMW, and Toyota—have already started adding Alexa to their infotainment systems, but this was via a direct relationship with Amazon. Now, with the SDK available for anyone to download, every auto company can join the party—and so can third-party infotainment system manufacturers like Pioneer, Sony, and Parrot.

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In addition to the basic SDK, Amazon is offering a range of sample Alexa applications to help developers get started.

There are some limitations, however. Alexa Auto can only stream audio from Amazon Music, iHeartRadio and Audible. And, although drivers can ask Alexa to call a contact by saying their name or phone number, the call will be placed using the car's existing phone-managing software.

The Alexa Auto SDK is available to download nowAmazon

Alexa Auto can also work with your car's navigation system, so you can ask Alexa to find a destination and take you there. However, the actual navigation will be handled by your car's software. Think of it as asking Alexa to tell the car's infotainment system what to do rather than being an entirely separate Alexa system for cars.

Controlling one's smart home devices from the car could be useful for switching on outside lighting when you arrive home or checking the locked door on your drive to work.

In a message to developers, Amazon said: "Alexa is always getting smarter with new features and capabilities added in the cloud. Connecting your vehicle to Alexa gives customers access to a wealth of information, including news and sports updates, to-do lists, and smart home control. All they have to do it ask."

Check out The GearBrain, our smart home compatibility checker to see the other compatible products that work with Amazon Alexa.

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