CarPlay for automakers
Introduction
95 percent of new cars sold today feature some level of iOS integration, whether through audio playback or call handling. But users and developers have long looked for opportunities to make better use of iOS while on the go.
With the launch of iOS 6, Apple expanded these capabilities with a new technology called Siri Eyes Free, which allowed iPhone users in the car to access Siri voice commands—to check the weather or send messages—without taking their attention off the road. For the first time, users could directly access their iOS devices using their cars’ physical controls—namely, the voice button common on many steering wheels. But it wasn’t enough: few car manufacturers expressed interest in the feature, and users’ purchasing decisions weren’t swayed by the ability to merely chat with Siri through their car speakers.
With iOS 7 in 2013, Apple expanded the in-car functionality into a wider suite called CarPlay, which sought to deliver even more iOS features while on the go. The technology seeks to make a digital impact on the largely analog in-car dashboard experience, and represents Apple’s foray into what is sure to be one of the largest technology spaces of the coming decade: the automotive industry.
The adoption curve for cars is sluggish in comparison to smartphones—you don’t see people swapping out their sedans in 24-month increments. For that reason, the technologies that disrupt automobiles can’t be beholden to the car upgrade cycle users are accustomed to—that is to say, the technology can’t come with the car. For years, automakers and technology companies have been converging on the idea that in-car experiences need to come from external devices, which are more regularly updated and grow more capable over time.
In order to push new features and keep up with design changes, CarPlay couldn’t be an operating system built into automobiles themselves. Instead, Apple designed its system to function as a literal extension of the iPhone. The ecosystem that Apple so tightly controls—the seamless marriage of iPhone hardware and iOS software—has grown to encompass in-car experiences, as well. As Google and others each look to make their own impact on the automotive space, Apple has given developers and auto manufacturers a massive opportunity to not only capitalize on Apple’s brand affinity, but also offer drivers safer and more useful in-car experiences.
Level 1: What CarPlay does
CarPlay delivers many of the core features of iOS to the car through a special automobile-specific interface. Straight from their dashboards, users can place phone calls, correspond via SMS and iMessage in Messages, get directions in Maps, and listen to their iPhone’s on-board music library in the Music app. What’s more, users can make use of Siri Eyes Free to get information about the weather and direct voice commands to their devices. But CarPlay is more than a greatest-hits view of iOS functions—both automobile manufacturers and app developers have roles to play in the CarPlay experience.
Car interiors are covered in buttons and knobs controlling the vehicle’s various functions, many of which are unique to the on-board entertainment systems—also known as “infotainment” systems. With CarPlay, these physical controls aren’t left on the curb, as volume dials and directional buttons can be used to navigate or interact with the CarPlay interface. Vehicles without touchscreen dashboard displays can offer physical controls in place of touch controls, and vehicles without any type of display can still make use of CarPlay features like Siri Eyes Free and voiceover turn-by-turn navigation. At present, most major car manufacturers have announced intentions to support CarPlay in upcoming 2015 models—including giants like Chrysler, Toyota, Chevrolet, BMW, and Nissan.
For developers, the opportunity for iOS apps on CarPlay is still revealing itself. As it stands, developer access to CarPlay APIs is limited to a select number of partners, and no publicly accessible CarPlay API exists as part of the standard iOS SDK. However, in addition to Apple’s Podcasts app and Beats Music, third-party audio streaming apps like Spotify, Rdio, and Overcast have partnered with Apple to develop CarPlay versions of their applications. These apps make use of straightforward track list and “now playing” views, but represent the first examples of how CarPlay apps could look and feel. Apple promises that more third-party additions are coming soon, and hints that developer access might expand in coming versions of iOS. But despite its secretive nature, there’s still a lot we already know about CarPlay—and a lot we can assume about its future development trajectory.
Level 2: How CarPlay works with cars
CarPlay is not a car-specific version of the full iOS operating system. In fact, prior to initiating CarPlay by plugging in an iPhone, no Apple-written code exists in the car’s entertainment system. Many auto manufacturers ship entertainment systems running a variant of BlackBerry’s QNX-based operating system, which has become common among recent vehicles. CarPlay works as a virtual machine above this native OS, integrating with certain manufacturers’ native control systems, allowing compatibility with a wide range of cars and dashboard capabilities.
When an iPhone connects to a CarPlay-enabled car through a Lightning cable, the device automatically handshakes with the vehicle and delivers car-specific interface elements. The growing family of apps that support CarPlay aren’t running on the car’s entertainment system, but instead run on the iPhone and display interfaces on the car’s dashboard display. (And, as previously mentioned, CarPlay-compliant vehicles technically don’t even need a display, as users can make use of Siri Eyes Free and other features by way of physical in-car controls.)
Apple’s approach with CarPlay from an iOS perspective is novel in its simplicity—unlike the platform’s relationship with Apple Watch, which uses WatchKit to display wearable-specific views on the Watch OS device—the company didn’t develop an entire new operating system for automobiles. Put simply, car manufacturers won’t need to change much about their entertainment systems to be compatible. But iOS developers need significantly more work to get their apps up to speed with automakers—including contact with the mothership itself.
Level 3: How CarPlay works with apps
Today, developers can’t just add CarPlay integration to their apps, as convenient and obvious as that might seem. Apple’s CarPlay developer page instead includes a link to contact them, and Cupertino will determine which iOS apps are appropriate for the budding platform. This tight control mirrors the company’s early behavior on iOS—the operating system didn’t allow third-party app development until version 2.0, instead selecting strategic partners like YouTube and Yahoo while directing other interested parties to build mobile web apps instead. But CarPlay is different from the early days of iOS in that the software is built on the modern iOS, which is one of the most popular and actively developed platforms in the world. Developers anticipate that CarPlay will grow to accept iOS developers of all stripes, and will become an essential member of the iOS ecosystem.
Because of its locked-down status, little is known about CarPlay implementation beyond reports that integration is “pretty simple.” For guidance, developers can look to existing iOS APIs that extend apps’ capabilities to interoperate with external devices or offer additional interface states. Extensibility, introduced in iOS 8 this fall, is a collection of frameworks that allow iOS apps to deliver widgets in Notification Center, share options in the iOS action menu, or extend the capabilities of system apps like Safari. Extensibility works through app bundles that live within standard iOS apps, miniature applications that handle specific tasks. The developer feature has introduced a wide range of new third-party functionality across iOS, but its most important member is one whose intention is most like CarPlay: WatchKit.
CarPlay’s technical behaviors are nothing like its namesake, AirPlay, which allows iOS devices to broadcast photos, videos, and their screens to devices like stereos and Apple TV. CarPlay is a system for iPhones to offer device-specific UI views on external displays while still executing code on the iPhone itself. WatchKit, similarly, is an API that operates as a conduit between iOS apps and companion apps on Apple Watch. Watch apps, at least in their current form, aren’t native to Watch OS, just as CarPlay doesn’t include some full dashboard operating system. With WatchKit, the iOS app instead manages UI states and executes code on behalf of the Watch app view running on the less-powerful Apple Watch. Like WatchKit, CarPlay enables app views that are specific to a different display size and on less capable hardware.
Apple’s primary concerns around opening CarPlay to all developers reportedly stems from a lack of control over interfaces, likely in the interest of driver attention, which explains the current exclusivity to audio streaming partners. With WatchKit, developers have extremely limited opportunities to expand their apps to Watch OS—static Glances, richer interactive notifications, and Watch app interface templates. With CarPlay, Apple might introduce similar prescriptions that limit developers’ interface creativity and protect drivers from their own distractions. In future additions to iOS, developers expect CarPlay to become a standard Extensibility framework within the iOS SDK, allowing any iOS developer to add CarPlay functionality to their apps.
Level 4: Why automakers should care
CarPlay is undoubtedly a major play for Apple and iOS, and will help define the category of connected car experiences for a burgeoning industry of developers. In a few years, most every car on the road will be compatible with some form of connected smartphone experience, and drivers will have new opportunities to connect and engage with the world without recklessly taking their eyes off the road. But despite the technological interest and strategic play on Apple’s part, is CarPlay something worth carmakers’ investment?
From one perspective, auto manufacturers don’t have to invest much. Because of its easy compatibility with many popular existing infotainment systems, and because of its feature parity and interoperability with Google’s Android Auto, automakers don’t have many technical hurdles preventing swift CarPlay adoption. (Android Auto utilizes a similar virtual machine approach on top of the same QNX-based operating systems as CarPlay, executing code on the Android phone and displaying different app UIs on the dashboard console, meaning many cars will be compatible with either.) Should manufacturers merely flip the switch for CarPlay, and forget about it?
For many car companies, the answer might be yes. But ignoring the next wave of automotive technologies can only last for so long, and even short-term investments in some of CarPlay’s subtler points will yield massive benefits in the long term. Automakers, too, can develop third-party apps that take advantage of CarPlay and populate the dashboard home screen out of the box. These apps are specific to the car brand—and, sometimes, even to the vehicle—and enable certain vehicle-specific functions that can integrate with iOS voice commands or UI controls.
Because CarPlay lives as a virtual machine above a traditional entertainment system OS, the integration can theoretically allow drivers to control every aspect of their car through CarPlay—assuming automakers opt into such functionality. Such additions might require collaboration with Apple, but the possibilities are enticing: imagine a CarPlay-enabled vehicle that lets drivers control their windshield wipers or adjust the air conditioning with a simple verbal command to Siri. Or a self-parking feature accessible to any customer through a branded iOS app download. This tight iOS ecosystem cohesion is reminiscent of HomeKit’s integration of disparate smart home products, and would not only provide improved customer experiences during their everyday commutes, but also give automakers a competitive advantage over peers slow to dive into CarPlay.
Users would be able to communicate with their car just as they do with their smartphone and favorite iOS apps, leveraging common interface vocabularies and app flows they already love to use. As CarPlay matures and its capabilities within automobiles are unlocked by automakers and Apple, developers can connect with car data in all-new ways. Diagnostic tools like Automatic, which currently depend on the car’s on-board diagnostic port (OBD-II), could instantly access and display a wealth of vehicle information at the moment it becomes relevant. Systems like LoJack could transform into app services reminiscent of Find My iPhone, helping drivers and police find stolen cars with the help of GPS location or Bluetooth Low-Energy. These ideas represent theoretical extensions of the CarPlay technology, but underscore cars’ increasingly connected trajectory.
The horizons for technologically enhanced cars are just now presenting themselves, and the boon for those first pioneers to explore CarPlay is clear: as these connected systems evolve from the luxury to the commonplace, vehicles with better in-car experiences will be more attractive to growing audiences of tech-hungry drivers. And the company that corners the market on exciting CarPlay-assisted ideas will capture the imaginations of customers looking for something beyond power windows.
Level 5: Getting from A to B
As it stands, CarPlay is available on a handful of 2014 vehicles, with many manufacturers promising 2015 offerings, and works with iPhone 5 and above—any iPhones with the Lightning connector. With major manufacturers like Mercedes-Benz, Volkswagen, and Volvo planning compatible models in 2015, and with after-market CarPlay infotainment systems from Alpine and Pioneer sating demand in the interim, many drivers will soon be using CarPlay and its limited library of apps in everyday life. How can automakers begin to take advantage?
First, carmakers’ native iOS apps will need to be updated to support CarPlay. (Given the close relationship with Apple that automotive manufacturing support would already entail, it’s likely that a level of collaboration with the company might arise naturally.) Many automakers already have iOS applications in the App Store, most of which offer owner-centered features like service requests and digital versions of the manual. Based on CarPlay’s likely development implementation, the process of adding support for the platform wouldn’t interfere with existing functions, and would instead add car-specific views and features over and above the app’s existing capabilities.
Next, it’s important to consider users’ expectations when building a CarPlay interface. Based on the fact that not every customer will make use of CarPlay, car dashboards cannot be radically redesigned to accommodate one massive display in place of analog buttons for multimedia functions. However, CarPlay can still be the best way to adjust the music volume, place a phone call, or even access vehicle-specific functionality—namely, through Siri or on-screen touch interfaces. Making these features simple and accessible to users through their preferred input method—traditional buttons, voice commands, or touch panels—can help make CarPlay feel like one part of a cohesive car experience.
Critically, car brands should be mindful to prioritize the driving experience above all else. Apple was wise to limit third-party adoption of CarPlay in its early stages—until it feels comfortable with interface limitations and clear best practices, some apps might only serve as a distraction while driving. Apple’s Messages app, for example, features precious few words: conversations are labeled by the contact’s name in large, clear type, but individual chat bubbles are invisible, as is, of course, any sort of keyboard. Instead, drivers can send and receive messages through Siri and voice recognition, eliminating dangerous eye candy from their field of view while preserving the app’s primary function. Similarly, CarPlay’s handful of music streaming apps share a magic interface formula to reduce clutter—basic playback controls and large, legible type, all optionally accessible via Siri voice commands or manual controls in the steering wheel.
There are likely no better examples for brand loyalty than automobiles and smartphones. CarPlay represents the natural evolution of two converging industries, a product of the increased sophistication and capability of automakers’ in-car computers and the ubiquity of mobile OS experiences from technology companies. But more than a whiz-bang feature for high-end interior packages, CarPlay represents an opportunity for automakers to assert themselves as innovative thinkers with technology.
Apple and Google can’t make CarPlay and Android Auto successful all by themselves. The thoughtful collaboration between developers, designers, and car manufacturers will help bridge the technological gap dividing iPhones from “infotainment” in the car. In the end, the features that disrupt the automotive industry from within will be those that best leverage these ecosystems’ tight integration and truly emphasize the driver’s experience. Drivers everywhere are itching for something more than discussing the weather with Siri—and automakers are uniquely positioned to give it to them.