Could AI Predict and Prevent Costly Car Repairs?

There’s no technology hotter at the moment than artificial intelligence (AI), but its usefulness in the automotive industry remains mostly unknown.

A California-based startup is hoping to change that in a meaningful way by using the technology to predict — and even prevent — costly car repairs before they happen. That’s according to the company itself, as Sparq touts the “AI-driven forecasting” and other capabilities unlocked through its tiny plug-in diagnostics tool.

“Sparq Diagnostics is quite a simple tool to work with,” Sparq co-founder Daniel Nieh said in an interview, noting that while the device is compatible with most vehicles made after 1996, at launch the corresponding smartphone app has been “optimized” to work with vehicles from 2014 or newer.

“Not only can we do real-time diagnosis, we have vehicle insights from how you drive, the car you drive, and the regional location that you’re in,” he continued. “With those insights … we can predict when your car’s going to break down.”

The Sparq Diagnostics device is about the size of a GoPro camera and plugs into the on-board diagnostics (OBD-II) port that’s tucked on or under the dashboards of most passenger vehicles sold in Canada. (Exceptions include some heavy-duty pickup trucks, as well as electric vehicles, which aren’t required to comply with the government-mandated standard.) Effectively, the decades-old diagnostics technology relies on sensors that monitor vehicles’ various systems, triggering warnings like a check-engine light when something is wrong.

The Sparq unit plugs in like any other OBD-II-compatible device, but it works in conjunction with a companion smartphone app to run diagnostics checks against the thousands of error codes that exist for any given OBD-II compliant vehicle. Sparq’s technology doesn’t just flag potential problems, but it breaks them down using easy-to-understand language instead of complex industry jargon.

“Your car’s talking to you,” goes the company’s slogan. “We just tell you how to listen.”

While existing OBD-II scanners can perform similar tasks, they typically show what are called diagnostic trouble codes (DTCs) — alphanumeric sequences that require technical translations. According to Nieh, Sparq Diagnostics reads the same DTCs, but the AI-enabled functionality of the smartphone app means they can be explained in a way that makes sense to the average person.

“We will interpret and we will explain the problem (to) you,” Nieh said, noting the system will also tell of the severity of the code — crucial for knowing whether the vehicle can be safely driven to the shop or it should be towed.

Nieh said the device doesn’t need to be plugged in all the time in order for it to work, although the more information it gathers, the better job it can do — particularly when it comes to predicting repairs. That’s where Sparq’s smartphone app comes in, with proactive notifications to warn of problems ranging from low tire pressure (for vehicles equipped with tire pressure monitoring) to a malfunctioning air intake.

Of course, that much data collection is enough to throw up a few red flags. But Nieh said Sparq anonymizes user information including personal identifiers, while the vehicle data is “never linked” to an individual beyond what they see on their own smartphone screen.

“We treat user data very carefully,” he said. “User privacy for us is a non-negotiable.”

According to Nieh, the data is stored on servers in the U.S. If a user decides to sell their vehicle or stop using Sparq Diagnostics, they can simply delete their account, with the data never linked back to them personally. He said Sparq is also committed to not selling the data it gathers to third parties like insurance companies.

“We will never sell our user data or transfer it to any kind of third party,” he said matter-of-factly.

While the company’s initial plans included a subscription-based model, it has since pivoted to an upfront fee structure. The device, which is currently only offered in the United States (and the app is only compatible with iPhones), has a retail price of US$499 and is sold direct-to-consumer via the Sparq website. Once a user creates their free account, enters their vehicle data, and plugs the device in, Sparq begins gathering and analyzing information.

While Sparq is currently focused on the U.S. market, Nieh said he expects it to work in Canada in the coming months. From there, he envisions rolling out the technology to the rest of the world, where different diagnostic port standards exist.

“We want to help people reimagine the relationship they have with their vehicles,” Nieh said. “We believe everybody, regardless of which country you’re from, regardless of what car you drive — everybody deserves to have a chance to talk with their car.”