CarPlay

First cars with next-generation CarPlay officially announced

Chance Miller | Dec 20 2023 - 9:45 am PT

Apple has officially made good on its long-standing promise. The first cars with support for next-generation CarPlay have (sort of) been announced. As reported by Cool Hunting and Car and Driver, Porsche and Aston Martin will be the first automakers to support next-generation CarPlay starting in 2024.

Notably, Aston Martin wasn’t on Apple’s original list of automakers that would support next-generation CarPlay.

Apple describes next-gen CarPlay as the “ultimate iPhone experience for the car.” It expands CarPlay to all the driver’s screens, including the instrument cluster. This makes for a “cohesive design experience that is the very best of your car and your iPhone.”

Next-gen CarPlay also includes support for vehicle functions like radio, temperature controls, and more.

Porsche and Aston Martin’s implementation of next-generation CarPlay will span multiple in-car screens, showing CarPlay’s iconic grid of apps, now playing information, Apple Maps integration, and more. CarPlay also controls the gauge cluster, showing the speedometer and other details.

Marco Mattiacci, global chief brand and commercial Officer at Aston Martin, said in a statement:

At Aston Martin we strive for excellence and performance and this was the key reason we chose to partner with Apple on the next generation of CarPlay. The integration of the latest state-of-the-art technology combined with a bespoke intuitive interface is paramount to creating the ultimate Aston Martin customer experience. We look forward to sharing more as we work together with Apple to bring the next generation of CarPlay to Aston Martins in 2024.

Michael Mauer, Porsche’s vice president of style, said:

We have long been committed to providing Porsche owners with the brand and sporty driving experience synonymous with the Porsche. In addition to the sports car itself, digital offerings that are perfectly tailored to our customers are becoming increasingly important to the overall driving experience.

We recently brought the My Porsche app to CarPlay to provide drivers with even easier access to car functionality, and in the future we will be adding support for the next generation of CarPlay to Porsche models. We look forward to delivering an experience that adds the personal touch of a driver’s iPhone to the exclusivity of a Porsche.

But while today’s news is the first update we’ve gotten on next-generation CarPlay since WWDC 2022, there are still a slew of unanswered questions.

First, we don’t know which specific models of Porsche and Aston Martin cars will support next-generation CarPlay. We also have no details on whether next-generation CarPlay will come to existing Porsche and Aston Martin cars or if it will be exclusive to new models.

Aston Martin did add that next-gen CarPlay is compatible with the latest version of its infotainment system that will debut in 2024 model year cars. Again, there’s no word on whether older cars will also add it through a software update.