Apple used its WWDC 2026 keynote to preview iOS 27, and while the headlines were dominated by a rebuilt, AI-powered Siri, there’s a quietly significant set of upgrades coming to Apple CarPlay – the in-car interface that, for many Malaysians, has become the default way to use a phone behind the wheel.
The features won’t ship immediately; they arrive as a free software update this fall, with a developer beta available now and a public beta to follow in July. But the direction Apple is taking CarPlay is worth unpacking now.
Video apps come to CarPlay, but only when you’re parked
The most eye-catching addition is video. Apple first teased the idea back at WWDC 2025, but iOS 27 is where the feature actually becomes available. Developers can now build CarPlay apps that let you browse and play video directly on the car’s screen, and apps that support AirPlay video can stream to a compatible vehicle display straight from your iPhone.
Before anyone panics about distracted driving, there’s an important caveat. Video playback only works when the car is parked. Apple says it imagines you using it while waiting at the airport pick-up zone, or, more relevant to the growing number of EV owners, while your car is plugged in and charging. Now, if only Tesla would go ahead and implement CarPlay already.
One thing to note is that this feature depends on the vehicle supporting it, and Apple says it’s geared towards newer cars. So it isn’t a guarantee that every CarPlay-equipped vehicle on the road today will get video because it depends on the hardware on the car’s side.
Siri AI arrives in the car
The new conversational Siri – Apple is branding the rebuilt assistant as “Siri AI” – extends to CarPlay as well. Apple’s example was asking Siri which hiking trail a friend had recommended and getting the answer read back instantly, drawing on personal context from your messages without you having to dig through your phone. Useful when driving because you don’t have to look for the message on your phone.
Siri AI in CarPlay requires an iPhone 15 Pro or newer. If you’re running an older iPhone, you’ll get the rest of the CarPlay improvements but not the smarter assistant.
Four smaller-but-welcome tweaks
Beyond the marquee features, a slide shown briefly during the keynote revealed four refinements that long-time CarPlay users will appreciate:
- Audio scrubbing in the Now Playing screen – so you can finally jump around within a podcast or track from the car display.
- Improved GPS accuracy and navigation heading – which should help with the small-but-annoying moments when the map can’t quite decide which way you’re facing.
- A mini-player for audio within apps – keeping playback controls accessible without leaving what you’re doing.
- Better wireless CarPlay reliability – arguably the most important one of all, given how flaky wireless CarPlay connections can be in day-to-day use.
When will we actually be able to use the new CarPlay?
All of these CarPlay features require an iPhone running iOS 27. The developer beta is out now, a public beta follows in July, and the full release should land alongside the next iPhone lineup in September.
No idea where the Malaysian market is in the rollout schedule as these features are often rolled out market by market.
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