No Android Auto or Apple CarPlay. This American car manufacturer wants to integrate applications natively and above all not go through your smartphone.
General Motors (GM), one of America’s largest automakers, has made a surprising decision by announcing that it will no longer integrate CarPlay and Android Auto on its future electric vehicles, starting with the upcoming Chevrolet Blazer EV which will arrive in third quarter of 2023.
Android Automotive, without CarPlay or Android Auto
Instead of its in-house system, GM is currently working on developing a new infotainment system based on Android Automotive. Different from Android Auto, Google offers Android-Automotive, already present at Renault, Polestar, Volvo, Honda and soon BMW and Volkswagen Group. It is an autonomous and on-board infotainment system, very similar to the one we have on our smartphones.
This choice to use Android Automotive does not technically justify the choice to stop offering Android Auto and Apple CarPlay. GM has decided not to allow other companies to exploit the screens of its future electric cars. Mike Himche, director of digital cabin experience, explains: We do not want to develop functions that depend on the user’s smartphone “.
It is a strategy comparable to that of Tesla. Future owners of the Chevrolet Blazer EV will get Google Maps and Google Assistant free for 8 years. The system will also be compatible with Spotify, Audible and so on. GM thus promises many native applications thanks, among other things, to the ecosystem of the Play Store. To use your smartphone as an audio source, you will need to use Bluetooth connectivity.
In a similar vein, Smart initially made the decision to also drop CarPlay and Android Auto for its new generation of electric vehicles, the Smart #1. However, in the face of customer feedback and growing demand for compatibility with these popular systems, Smart finally backtracked. The manufacturer has chosen to reintegrate CarPlay and Android Auto into its Smart #1, in a future OTA update, thus showing the importance of taking into account consumer preferences and expectations in the development of new technologies.
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