California-based voice and conversational AI specialist SoundHound has added an in-vehicle voice AI parking agent to UK connected car services provider Parkopedia.

The collaboration integrates Parkopedia’s global parking database, covering more than 90 million spaces in over 20,000 cities, with SoundHound’s in-car voice commerce platform. Drivers can now simply ask their vehicle to find parking, compare real-time prices and availability, and complete payments on the spot, all within seconds and all by voice.

The AI agent provides proactive, intelligent recommendations, such as suggesting parking near a destination, surfacing special offers such as first hour free, and presenting real-time availability and pricing options, adding convenience and value to the driving experience.

Example scenario:

• Driver: “Navigate me to Grand Central Market, LA.”
• AI voice agent: “Navigating to Grand Central Market. Parking looks busy at Grand Central Market. Would you like me to find you available parking near your destination?”
• Driver: “Yes, please.”
• AI voice agent: “There are five parking locations near Grand Central Market. The closest is Nevada Boulevard with availability and a pre-paid payment option. I’ve shown the associated costs on screen, would you like to reserve a spot?”
• Driver: “Yes, please reserve it.”
• AI voice agent: “Your parking is confirmed and paid, the first hour is free. Navigation is set.”

“At Parkopedia, our goal has always been to remove friction from parking, a traditionally challenging element that detracts from the driving experience,” said Duncan Licence, chief product officer at Parkopedia. “By integrating our global parking database with SoundHound’s advanced voice AI, we’re making it possible for drivers to seamlessly find, reserve and pay for parking using nothing more than their voice in a major step forward in convenience and safety on the road.”

Michael Zagorsek, COO at SoundHound AI, added: “Agentic voice commerce is redefining how drivers interact with their vehicles, allowing them to make hands-free purchases and complete transactions on the go. Parking is a natural next application. Together with Parkopedia, we’re giving drivers a fully conversational, hands-free way to find and pay for parking on the go. It’s part of our broader vision to make everyday in-car tasks effortless, intelligent and connected.”

Voice commerce first debuted at CES 2025 with in-vehicle food ordering (www.youtube.com/watch?v=1Khq050WmdQ). With Parkopedia, SoundHound is expanding the platform to essential driving-related services by enabling frictionless, voice-powered parking transactions, demonstrating how conversational AI can make everyday tasks faster, simpler and safer.

The partnership between Parkopedia and SoundHound will be showcased on SoundHound’s CES 2026 stand in Las Vegas (West Hall, Stand 5867). SoundHound plans to enable new, hands-free voice commerce capabilities across multiple industries, including restaurant reservations, ticket purchases and appointment making, bringing the same convenience to various services accessible from the vehicle. SoundHound’s conversational AI technology is already used by hundreds of large enterprise brands and is deployed in millions of cars and devices globally.

Parkopedia (business.parkopedia.com), acquired by Arrive earlier this year, is a connected car services provider used by automakers, organisations and millions of drivers around the world. It helps drivers find and pay for parking, EV charging, fuel and tolls across 90 countries. Parkopedia is also developing detailed indoor maps and corresponding algorithms to help drivers and self-driving vehicles navigate to available parking spaces and EV chargers.

SoundHound AI (www.soundhound.com) specialises in voice and conversational AI built on proprietary technology.