Apple's Next-Gen CarPlay Set to Expand Beyond Luxury Cars With Hyundai, Kia [Gurman]

Apple's next-generation CarPlay interface has remained largely out of reach since it was first teased in 2022. While the company promised a system that would extend across every screen in the dashboard, the rollout so far has been slow and confined to ultra-luxury vehicles. That now appears to be shifting.



According to Mark Gurman, the next-gen experience—often referred to as CarPlay Ultra—is set to arrive in at least one major new model from Hyundai or Kia in the second half of this year.


This would mark a notable expansion. Until now, the new interface has only appeared in high-end vehicles like the Aston Martin DB12 and the Porsche Taycan. Bringing it to mass-market brands such as Hyundai and Kia would signal Apple's intent to move beyond niche deployments. Gurman notes that the slow adoption rate is not necessarily due to lack of interest, but rather the complexity of the software itself.

Unlike the standard CarPlay most drivers are familiar with, which functions as a projection from the iPhone to a portion of the display, CarPlay Ultra is bespoke. It requires Apple's designers to work closely with automakers to tailor the interface to specific screen layouts, gauge clusters, and vehicle sensor data. This turns what is typically a plug-and-play feature into a custom engineering effort.

There is also the question of control. Gurman points out that many automakers remain reluctant to hand over deep dashboard integration to Apple, particularly after the company spent years pursuing its own electric vehicle project.

The report also includes another significant development: Tesla appears to be reversing course. Despite Elon Musk's long-standing resistance to Apple's in-car software, Gurman says work is underway to bring CarPlay to Tesla vehicles. This corroborates reports from November that suggested the EV maker was reconsidering its position as sales momentum softened.


The integration, however, will not involve the full next-generation experience. Gurman specifies that Tesla is working with the standard, non-Ultra version of CarPlay. Even so, its adoption would be a notable change for Tesla owners who have long relied on workarounds to access Apple services such as Maps and Music.

Tesla's move, combined with Apple's expansion into Hyundai and Kia, highlights a growing split among automakers. General Motors took the opposite path last year, when it confirmed it would drop CarPlay entirely from future electric and gas vehicles in favor of its own infotainment platform. Rivian has made a similar decision, with CEO RJ Scaringe recently calling CarPlay a "life raft" for bad software.

Please download the iClarified app or follow iClarified on X, Facebook, YouTube, and RSS for more Apple CarPlay updates.