Microsoft and Toyota late Tuesday organized a special event for April 6 at 4PM Eastern. The two said little about what it would involve but alluded to a “collaboration” between them. It was important enough that Microsoft chief Steve Ballmer and his Toyota equivalent, Akio Toyoda, would both be present.
The deal may be for car technology from Microsoft’s Auto platform. Microsoft already has deep inroads through its tie-in with Ford for Sync and Fiat’s Blue&Me. MS could give Toyota a voice-activated system that not only ties into calls, music, and GPS but also smartphone apps. Toyota’s cars have grown increasingly smart by necessity and will lean even more that direction when its Prius C and Prius V models go on sale.
