Apple barely talked about CarPlay at its WWDC 2026 keynote, giving most of the spotlight to Siri AI and the broader Apple Intelligence additions in iOS 27. But that doesn’t mean CarPlay is a no-show this year.
The Cupertino giant buried most of the CarPlay updates in a developer-only video, and, as it turns out, there’s genuinely more here than you would have expected. As a CarPlay user myself, I’d say some of these features are long overdue, while others tag along with the broader iOS 27 redesign.
So, without any further ado, let’s discuss everything new coming to your CarPlay dashboard this fall, with the stable iOS 27 release.
Apps with video playback in CarPlay with iOS 27 Apple / YouTube
Full video apps for when you’re parked
The most substantial update to CarPlay this year is support for video playback. Apple’s iOS 27 lets developers build video streaming apps for your car’s dashboard. CarPlay already got AirPlay video casting last year, but iOS 27 takes it a step further, letting you watch videos directly from supported apps.
Apple hasn’t confirmed the list of supported apps yet, but it might include names like YouTube and Netflix. The catch, however, is that you can only watch videos on your CarPlay screen when your car is parked. Further, the manufacturer has to specifically enable the feature, which is why I’m not expecting every car to get this on day one.
Audio scrubbing in Now Playing
This is the “how was this not already here” CarPlay update. I can’t tell you how many times I’ve tried to jump to a specific part of a song using the horizontal audio bar on the CarPlay Now Playing screen, only to realize it doesn’t do anything.
CarPlay Now Playing screen with audio progress bar Apple
With iOS 27, the Now Playing screen finally gets a real scrubber. Using the horizontal progress bar, you can drag and jump to any point in a song or podcast. If you’re the type who replays the same 10 seconds of a song on a loop, or skips podcast intros entirely, this one’s for you, no question.
A persistent audio MiniPlayer
Music and podcast apps will get a persistent MiniPlayer. It’s in the top-right corner of the CarPlay dashboard, offering basic playback controls along with the album art.
You can simply glance over while checking the map for your exit, and you’ll actually know what’s playing and be able to skip it, without backing out of navigation first.
Audio MiniPlayers in CarPlay in iOS 27 Apple / YouTube
Better navigation heading and GPS accuracy
This is one of the quieter yet most important CarPlay updates Apple ships with iOS 27. The company is improving how the iPhone-mirroring system tracks your direction and position, refining both GPS accuracy and the heading detection (the direction your car is pointing in).
I’ll admit that it’s not a flashy feature, but it should fix the occasional car icon spinning in circles at a stoplight glitch or navigation confidently rerouting you down a street you are not on.
More reliable wireless CarPlay
Wireless CarPlay is all about convenience, and it works just fine, until it doesn’t, and that’s usually when I give up and switch to a wired connection. For anyone who’s dealt with mid-drive drops, unclear voice calls, or a dip in audio quality after hanging up, iOS 27 could be much-awaited fix.
Though Apple doesn’t explain the extent of the change, it says that wireless CarPlay connections are more reliable in iOS 27.
App templates across different categories for developers Apple / YouTube
New developer tools
iOS 27 adds new app templates across categories. It also gets support for Live Activities (introduced with iOS 16.1) and widgets from any app, so you could have a live sports score widget running on your CarPlay display without actually opening the app.
Developers also gain new APIs for building conversational voice apps, including AI chatbot integrations, into CarPlay.
A subtle visual refresh
While the design language would remain the same, CarPlay gets a total of 14 new wallpapers in the same Celosia style, debuting across iOS 27 and macOS 27. Liquid Glass elements will reflect the transparency level you choose with the new iOS 27 slider, while app icons gain additional refractive layers that add depth and definition.
Siri AI on iPhone Apple
Siri AI finally comes to your car
On top of all that, CarPlay also gets Siri AI with iOS 27. For those catching up, it’s Apple’s long-delayed, Gemini-powered assistant that can handle natural follow-up questions the way Gemini does.
So, you should be able to ask for a restaurant, then ask what time it closes, without repeating the entire request. Siri AI also stores every conversation on your iPhone’s Siri app, with a small car icon indicating you asked the question while using CarPlay.
The catch, however, is that Siri AI for CarPlay requires an iPhone 15 Pro or newer.
