Apple CarPlay has always had a lot of catching up to do compared with Android Auto, whether it’s personalization or AI integration, and the gap only seems to be widening.
In the past year or so, Google has been making a major push to integrate Gemini more into the Android Auto experience, replacing its Google Assistant entirely with Gemini, deeply implementing it into Google Maps, and, just recently, rolling out Personal Intelligence with Gemini to Android Auto, which can connect to apps like Gmail, Google Calendar, Maps, and Photos to give you “uniquely tailored answers” while on the road.
Apple has been making strides with CarPlay, and with iOS 27, it brought its smarter, more conversational Siri AI experience to CarPlay. But compared to Gemini’s capabilities on Android, Siri AI isn’t quite up to par yet (it is still in beta), and in my experience, it can be a little slow or even time out mid-conversation.
On the other hand, Google has been working to bring more Gemini capabilities to CarPlay, not just Android Auto, and it recently launched Gemini in Google Maps for CarPlay users. But now it’s taking things a step further.
You can now use Gemini directly through CarPlay
The app is available to all CarPlay users
Google has announced that it is bringing its Gemini app to Apple CarPlay for free, so you can now use the app and talk to Gemini hands-free while on the road. This isn’t a gradual rollout either, as Google says it’s already available worldwide to all iOS users.
However, there are a few steps you may need to take to get the Gemini app to appear in CarPlay. The first step is to make sure the app is up-to-date, which you can easily do by visiting Gemini’s App Store page. Once the app is updated, ensure microphone permissions are enabled and that you’ve spoken to Gemini Live at least once on your iPhone; then it should appear in CarPlay.
Google highlights several things you can do with Gemini on CarPlay, including asking it for a rundown of your day (since it can access your calendar) or asking it to help you catch up on emails and summarize them, thanks to its ability to connect to Gmail.
You can also ask Gemini about local spots and landmarks during your trip, like restaurant recommendations in the area you’re driving to, or details about a landmark or monument you saw while driving by.
Google also says you can use Gemini on CarPlay to brainstorm ideas and “think out loud.” Any conversations you’ve had with it in CarPlay are synced and saved to the Gemini app on your iPhone, so you can go back to them later.
It’s worth underlining here that all of this happens directly through the Gemini app, and Gemini isn’t replacing Siri AI in CarPlay in any way. If you want to talk to Gemini, you have to open the Gemini app on CarPlay, and this isn’t like Android Auto, where you can access Gemini at any time just by saying “Hey Google.”
All things considered, I appreciate seeing Google work not only to update its Android Auto experience with Gemini but also to bring some of its functionality to Apple CarPlay. It’s clear Google wants to get Gemini into as many hands as possible, and launching its app on CarPlay is another way to do that.
