Why automakers are dropping Apple CarPlay in 2026

For over a decade, Apple CarPlay has offered drivers a familiar alternative to often clunky factory infotainment systems. Now, some automakers are reconsidering that arrangement. General Motors has already begun removing CarPlay from its newest electric vehicles, including the Chevrolet Blazer EV, and plans to drop it from gas-powered models too once its own centralized computing platform arrives around 2028. Tesla and Rivian have never supported CarPlay, though Tesla is reported to have tested it internally.

Why CarPlay caught on

CarPlay's main appeal is consistency: regardless of the car, drivers see a familiar interface and can use the apps already on their phone. Before CarPlay and Android Auto existed, drivers relied on manufacturer-built systems that were often unreliable or short-lived — Ford and Lincoln's MyFord Touch lasted only five years, and BMW once charged $80 a year for CarPlay access. Outdated maps and costly navigation updates were also common complaints with older systems.

Control over data and integration

GM argues that switching to Google's Android Automotive — a system that runs apps directly on the car rather than mirroring a phone — allows for deeper integration, such as navigation that factors in an EV's remaining charge when planning routes with charging stops. But keeping everything in-house also gives automakers more control over driver data. In January, the FTC banned GM from selling driver data for five years following allegations it collected and sold behavioral data without informed consent.

Apple, meanwhile, is trying to close the gap with CarPlay Ultra, a more ambitious system that takes over the instrument cluster, radio and climate controls in addition to the main display. So far, only Aston Martin offers it, though Hyundai and Kia have said they plan to in the future. Standard CarPlay remains available on hundreds of car models.