GlobeNewswire Inc | Dec 21, 2020 08:00AM EST

December 21, 2020

BERLIN and BURLINGTON, Mass., Dec. 21, 2020 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Cerence Inc. (NASDAQ: CRNC), AI for a world in motion, today announced that it has received funding from Germanys Federal Ministry for Economic Affairs and Energy and signed on as a member of the three-year EMMI (Empathische Mensch-Maschine Interaktion or, Empathetic Human-Machine Interaction) project. Cerences role in the project will focus on the creation of emotionally aware automotive assistants that increase trust in autonomous vehicles, a crucial element in the advancement of vehicle autonomy.

A Deloitte study of more than 2,000 German drivers showed that while 61% are interested in trying out new developments in autonomous driving, respondents demonstrate a fundamental lack in confidence in the safety of autonomous cars, with 90% reporting that they want to be able to intervene and take control at any time and 65% responding that they are afraid that autonomous technology is not reliable.

As we continue to approach higher levels of vehicle autonomy, we know that trust will be one of the most critical factors in creating widespread consumer acceptance and adoption of autonomous cars. This is a challenge our entire industry is faced with solving together, said Sanjay Dhawan, CEO, Cerence. We are proud to join a world-class, forward-thinking group of innovators and work together to create an automotive assistant and in-car experience that helps move this important mission forward.

As a member of the EMMI project, a team at Cerence, led by the companys emotion recognition expert Dr. Raymond Brueckner and UX expert Dr. Markus Funk, will focus on emotion-based technologies and their impact on increasing driver comfort, confidence and affinity for autonomous vehicles. Leveraging auditory emotion detection and emotion-aware dialog systems, Cerence will develop an empathetic and intuitive automotive assistant that can respond and give feedback to drivers with an unparalleled level of emotional intelligence and understanding, improving the driving experience and ultimately increasing trust in autonomous driving technologies.

Additional members of the EMMI program include Charamel GmbH, Saint-Gobain Sekurit Deutschland GmbH & Co. KG, Deutsches Forschungszentrum fr knstliche Intelligenz GmbH (DFKI), CanControls GmbH, and the Institut fr Kraftfahrzeuge der RWTH Aachen University (ika).

To learn more about Cerence, visit www.cerence.com, and follow the company on LinkedIn and Twitter.

About Cerence Inc.Cerence (NASDAQ: CRNC) is the global industry leader in creating unique, moving experiences for the automotive world. As an innovation partner to the worlds leading automakers, it is helping transform how a car feels, responds and learns. Its track record is built on more than 20 years of knowledge and more than 325 million cars on the road today. Whether its connected cars, autonomous driving or e-vehicles, Cerence is mapping the road ahead. For more information, visit www.cerence.com.

Contact InformationKate HickmanCerence Inc.Tel: 339-215-4583Email: kate.hickman@cerence.com