Big upgrades for Android Auto and Apple Carplay

South African motorists with Google’s Android Auto and Apple’s Carplay supported on their phones and vehicles can look forward to many new features coming in 2025.

These two platforms can greatly enhance the in-car experience with a wide range of optimised apps for navigation, music playback, and other supplemental capabilities right in the infotainment system.

In South Africa, almost all new cars — even the most affordable Suzuki models — support Android Auto and Apple Carplay.

Both tech giants recently held their developer conferences, where they announced several updates coming to the two apps in the coming months.

One of the biggest features launching on Android Auto is Google’s generative AI-powered tool Gemini, which will allow users to use natural speech to perform various actions.

“Gemini connects to Google Maps and your other apps from YouTube Music to Spotify to Calendar to find exactly what you need and help you take action,” Google explained in a blog post.

Noteworthy capabilities include support for automatically translating messages into different languages when communicating with specific contacts.

Gemini will also be able to remember when you have set a specific language preference for a particular contact.

The Gemini Live conversational experience will also be available, allowing drivers to brainstorm and learn while on the go.

Google mentions one useful application of this could be preparing and refining a strategy for a meeting on a particular topic — like a promotion.

Android Auto is also getting support for mobile gaming, video streaming, and browsing apps. For safety purposes, these will only be usable when the car is standing still.

Nonetheless, they should still be useful when drivers are waiting to pick someone up and especially welcome for EV drivers who tend to spend more time waiting in their cars charging.

In the longer run, Google has also been working on integrating climate controls and electric vehicle battery monitoring into Android Auto, although these are longer-term improvements.

Support for some of these features will depend on the car model and the version of Android that your phone supports.

The latest version of Google’s operating system — Android 16 — will be rolling out over the next few months.

The table below shows a roadmap of progress for existing and new categories of apps on Android Auto and Cars with Google Built-In, also known as Android Automotive.

CarPlay getting a fresh coat of paint

Apple announced a plethora of changes to its CarPlay software at WWDC 2025, including the divisive “Liquid Glass” design, Apple’s first major visual refresh since the iPhone 7.

Several features from the higher-end Apple CarPlay Ultra software, which was recently launched only on Aston Martin models, are being carried over to the more ubiquitous app.

These include widgets to allow users to quickly view the status of weather, calendars, reminders, and smart home devices.

There will also be Live Actions that provide users with the real-time status of sports matches, food deliveries, flight progress, and other constantly changing items.

Apple has also devised a less intrusive implementation for calls and messages, which currently take up nearly the entire screen.

With the latest CarPlay update, these communications will be presented in pop-up notifications with various options, including emojis for quick reactions to texts.

Users will need to have the latest version of Apple’s iPhone operating system — iOS 26 — to enjoy the new look and features.

Apple’s higher-end CarPlay Ultra software, the company’s equivalent of Android Automotive of Google Built-In, is also expanding to more major brands, including Hyundai and Kia.

This software allows users to change the appearance and themes of elements on their instrument cluster, including the speedometer, tachometer, fuel gauge, and temperature gauge.

The images below show some of the key features coming to Apple CarPlay for users of iPhones running iOS 26, which will be supported all the way back to the iPhone 11.