The xOverland assistant (voice AI)

Tap the sparkle in the header and just say where you want to go. The xOverland assistant, powered by Claude, turns a plain-spoken destination into a complete, safe driving plan — and it does it while looking at your truck's real fuel level, range, tow status, the time of day, and the weather. Instead of a bare "route to X," you get a plan that knows when you'll need to stop for gas and whether you should grab a hotel before the last stretch.

Where to find it: The sparkle icon (a small four-point star) in the top-right of the header, just to the left of the gear/Settings icon. It's live for planning on the XRoad / OnRoad map page — that's where tapping it opens the assistant.

When you'll use it:

• You're rolling and want to set a destination hands-free instead of typing an address.
• You're heading somewhere far and want the truck to figure out the gas and overnight stops for you.
• You're towing, running low on fuel, or driving into weather, and you want a plan that accounts for it.
• You'd rather say "nearest coffee" or "In-N-Out in Vegas" than search a map.

The screen, part by part

When you tap the sparkle on the map page, the map dims behind a centered panel titled Claude (with the sparkle icon). Tapping anywhere on the dimmed background, or the Close button at the bottom, dismisses it at any time. The panel changes depending on what's happening:

• Listening (voice). A microphone icon gently pulses and you'll see "Listening — where to?". As you speak, your words appear live in place of that prompt so you can see it's hearing you correctly. Just say your destination naturally.
• Where to? (typing). A text box with the prompt "Where to?" and an example placeholder (e.g. "Las Vegas" or "nearest coffee"). Type your destination and either press Go on the keyboard or tap the blue Plan route button. This view appears automatically if voice isn't available, if it didn't catch anything, or if you prefer to type.
• Planning your route… A spinner with "Planning your route…" and, below it, the request it's working on in quotes. This is Claude thinking through your trip.
• The proposed trip. Once it has a plan you'll see, top to bottom:
  • Destination name in large text.
  • ETA and distance just under it (for example "3h 42m · 214 mi"), in the accent color.
  • A one-line spoken summary of the plan in plain language — the same calm sentence it reads aloud.
  • The stop list, a scrollable set of cards from your current location to your destination. Each stop has an icon and a label, plus a short reason. Icon types include your current location (start), fuel stops, food, hotel, rest breaks, and the destination flag. This is the whole plan laid out in order.
  • A "Couldn't pin" warning (only if it applies): a small amber note listing any safety stop — like a fuel or hotel stop — it recommended but couldn't place precisely on the map. The route is still built; this is an honest heads-up to keep an eye out.
  • Start route, a blue button with a navigation arrow. Tap it to begin turn-by-turn guidance to that destination, following the planned stops.
• If something goes wrong. You'll see a short, plainly-worded message (also read aloud) — for example if it couldn't find the destination or couldn't reach the service. When it makes sense, a "Type it instead" button appears so you can rephrase without starting over.

Whatever state it's in, it speaks its reply aloud through the truck's speakers using the device's voice, so you can keep your eyes on the road. You never have to read the screen to know what it decided.

How to plan a route by voice

1. Make sure you're on the XRoad / OnRoad map page.
2. Tap the sparkle in the top-right of the header.
3. The first time, the truck may ask for microphone permission — allow it. (If you decline, it simply switches to the typing box.)
4. When you see the pulsing mic and "Listening — where to?", say your destination — for example, "Take me to Moab, Utah" or "Find the nearest gas station."
5. Watch your words appear on screen, then wait a moment while it plans.
6. Review the proposed trip — destination, drive time, and any stops it added.
7. Tap Start route to begin guidance, or Close to dismiss.

How to plan a route by typing

1. On the map page, tap the sparkle.
2. If the typing box doesn't come up on its own, it will after voice is unavailable or comes back empty. You'll see "Where to?" with a text field.
3. Type your destination (an address, a city, a place name, or a request like "nearest coffee").
4. Press Go on the keyboard or tap Plan route.
5. Review the plan and tap Start route.

What you can ask

The assistant is your route-planning copilot — its specialty is turning a destination into a smart, multi-stop driving plan. It's great at:

• Straight destinations — "Drive to Flagstaff, Arizona." / "Home." / "Take me to Zion National Park."
• Nearby searches — "Nearest gas station." / "Find coffee near me." / "Closest In-N-Out."
• Named places — "Hampton Inn in Barstow." / "Bass Pro Shops Las Vegas."
• Long hauls where it plans the stops for you — "Denver to Las Vegas." Here it'll figure the drive time, add a fuel stop (earlier and more often if you're towing), and suggest an overnight hotel if you'd be arriving very late with hours still to drive.

Because it reads your truck's live data, the plan adapts to your situation: if you're low on fuel it routes you to gas first; if a trailer is connected it assumes worse mileage and refuels sooner; in rain, snow, or heat it plays it a little more conservatively and mentions the condition calmly.

A few honest notes on scope: this assistant is focused on planning drives, not free-form chat. It won't answer trivia, and it doesn't operate your climate, lights, or other controls — those live on their own pages. Think of it as the best co-pilot you've ever had for the where and how of getting there. (There's also a nice touch: press and hold the sparkle and it'll speak a quick spoken status line about the truck.)

What you need

• An Anthropic API key. The assistant is powered by Claude, so it needs your own key. Go to Settings › (scroll to) Claude assistant and paste your key (it starts with sk-ant-…) into the Anthropic API key field, then tap Save key. Your key is stored only on this device. You can tap Clear to remove it anytime.
  • Until a key is saved, tapping the sparkle will tell you: "Add your Claude API key in Settings to use the assistant."
  • If a saved key is ever rejected, it'll say so and point you back to Settings to check it.
• An internet connection. Planning happens in the cloud, so the truck needs data (Wi-Fi hotspot or a connected phone) at the moment you ask. If it can't get online, it says so and you can try again.
• A GPS fix. It plans from your current location, so it needs to know where you are. If there's no fix yet, it'll tell you it can't plan a route until it has one. (Location permission is requested when the app starts.)
• A microphone (for voice). Voice uses your head unit's speech recognition. Many aftermarket units don't include one — that's fine: the assistant automatically falls back to the typing box, so you lose nothing but the hands-free part. Microphone permission is requested the first time you use voice.

Tips & good to know

• The sparkle does double duty. On the map page it's the route planner described here. On any other page, tapping it just plays a short spoken line — the full trip-planning assistant only opens from the map.
• It always gives you something. For a long or slightly ambiguous request it picks its best interpretation and plans rather than peppering you with questions — you review the result before anything starts.
• Nothing happens until you confirm. It only proposes a plan; guidance doesn't begin until you tap Start route. Reviewing and closing costs you nothing.
• It reads your truck, live. Fuel percentage, estimated and factory distance-to-empty, average MPG, whether a trailer is hitched, transmission temperature, tire pressures, warning lamps, the local time, and current weather all feed the plan when that data is available (much of it comes from a connected OBD-II adapter or the head-unit connection). Where a value is unknown, it simply reasons conservatively.
• It's honest about gaps. If it wanted to add a fuel or hotel stop but couldn't place it exactly, it keeps the route and shows the amber "Couldn't pin" note (and mentions it aloud) instead of quietly dropping a stop you were counting on.
• Spoken summaries are short and calm by design — one or two plain sentences, no numbers read aloud, no jargon — because you're driving. The detail lives on the screen for when you're stopped.
• You're always one tap from out. The Close button, the dimmed background, and the back gesture all dismiss the assistant instantly and stop it talking.