Apple recently held its highly anticipated WWDC 2026 keynote, where it pulled back the curtain on all its major software updates coming later this year, including iOS 27, macOS 27, iPadOS 27, tvOS 27, and more.
A large portion of the event was dedicated to Siri AI, Apple’s next-generation version of Siri powered by Apple Intelligence. Apple says the upgraded assistant will be more conversational, better understand your personal context, and answer questions on almost any topic, much like Google Gemini. Because so much time was spent on Siri AI, however, there wasn’t much room during the keynote for other major updates, including what’s new for CarPlay.
At WWDC 2025, Apple unveiled support for video in CarPlay with iOS 26, allowing drivers to watch videos on their vehicle’s display while parked. Since then, the company hasn’t shared many additional details about that feature or other CarPlay improvements in the pipeline.
While Apple only mentioned CarPlay once during its WWDC 2026 keynote, it did do a deep dive into all the new features and enhancements coming to CarPlay with iOS 27 in a separate video for developers. And surprisingly, there’s quite a bit for CarPlay users to look forward to this year beyond Siri AI.
Here’s what Apple has in store for CarPlay with iOS 27, which is now available in developer beta ahead of a public beta later this summer and a full rollout this fall.
Video playback is coming to CarPlay
Siri AI is also making an appearance
The big CarPlay news in iOS 27 is the improvements Apple is making to CarPlay video, which the company says will be available in new vehicles that support the feature. You’ll know your vehicle is compatible if, when you’re watching a video on your iPhone, you see an option to cast it to your CarPlay display via AirPlay.
With iOS 27 specifically, Apple has updated the CarPlay framework to let developers add video browsing and playback directly to their CarPlay apps. That means if your vehicle is parked and supports CarPlay video, you’ll be able to browse, select, and watch videos right from your car’s screen without needing to pick up your iPhone. For safety reasons and to comply with the laws in many states and countries, this will only work when your car is parked.
Apple says the video playback feature is designed for situations such as waiting for someone at the airport, charging your EV, or taking a break from driving.
Beyond the video upgrades, Apple is also bringing Siri AI to CarPlay. The enhanced assistant will be able to help with everyday driving tasks, such as pulling up directions a friend sent you or finding nearby restaurants. To me, it sounds very similar to the experience Google is rolling out with Gemini for Android Auto, which makes sense given the new Siri is built on Google Gemini models thanks to a deal Apple struck with Google. Siri AI will be available to CarPlay users with iOS 27 on an iPhone 15 Pro or newer.
Both Siri AI and CarPlay video playback will be available to CarPlay users when iOS 27 releases this fall.
More upgrades coming to CarPlay with iOS 27
Audio scrubbing is finally on the way
There are plenty of other improvements coming to CarPlay with iOS 27 later this year, with Apple putting a major focus on making the experience easier to use and more reliable — something that gets a huge thumbs up from me.
According to MacRumors, some of the highlights include improved wireless CarPlay reliability and the addition of audio scrubbing to the Now Playing screen. Here’s everything we know is coming to CarPlay with iOS 27:
- Audio scrubbing is coming to the Now Playing screen, letting you jump to a specific point in a song or podcast.
- A new audio mini-player will let you control media playback while using other apps.
- Improved reliability for wireless CarPlay connections.
- GPS location accuracy and navigation heading detection are being improved.
- Developers can now add video browsers to their apps, allowing users to browse and watch videos directly from the CarPlay screen when a supported vehicle is parked.
- Siri AI is coming to CarPlay, enabling more natural conversations and helping answer questions while you’re on the road.
All in all, I’m glad there’s a lot more to be excited about with CarPlay in iOS 27 than just Siri AI. The improved wireless reliability and audio scrubbing are the two features that stand out most to me. One of my biggest frustrations with CarPlay is when it randomly disconnects for no apparent reason, so I’m hoping iOS 27 finally smooths that out. And as someone who often jumps back to specific moments in songs and podcasts, having audio scrubbing built right into the Now Playing screen is a feature I’m looking forward to trying.
If you want to check out iOS 27 and the latest CarPlay features for yourself, the developer beta is available now. Just keep in mind that it’s still beta software, so bugs and other issues are to be expected. A public beta is expected later this summer ahead of the full release this fall, which will likely arrive in September.
