- General Motors will eventually stop offering Apple CarPlay and Android Auto on all of its gas-powered cars.
- GM CEO Mary Barra confirmed the move on The Verge's Decoder podcast, saying the popular phone-mirroring feature will be phased out on future models.
- Its EVs have already ditched Apple CarPlay and Android Auto, and the full transition will start in 2028 when GM debuts its new computing hardware.
GM caused a stir a couple of years ago when it decided to eliminate Apple CarPlay and Android Auto on its electric vehicles. While most people who planned to buy a GM-branded new car with a gas engine took a collective sigh of relief, anyone who plans on buying one in 2028 and beyond should know that it likely won't have either phone-mirroring feature.
That's because GM CEO Mary Barra said the company plans to phase out Apple CarPlay and Android Auto on future models, regardless of whether they have an internal-combustion engine or not. Barra confirmed that controversial decision during an interview on The Verge's Decoder podcast, which was released the same day that GM announced details about a new "centralized computing platform." Developed in-house, this new electrical architecture will debut on the 2028 Cadillac Escalade IQ, and it will eventually be the used in all models under GM's vast portfolio.
When gas-fed models inevitably make that transition too, they'll lose CarPlay and Android Auto. However, like with GM's current EVs, the infotainment system will be based on Google software, which should make life easier for Android users. Of course, there are obviously a lot of people who own Apple phones, and it remains to be seen if GM's strategy will turn out to be a bold move or a bad one. Still, this won't happen overnight—or even within the next two years—so there's plenty of time to get a new GM vehicle with the familiarity and ease of use that phone mirroring provides before that disappears for good.
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Eric Stafford’s automobile addiction began before he could walk, and it has fueled his passion to write news, reviews, and more for Car and Driver since 2016. His aspiration growing up was to become a millionaire with a Jay Leno–like car collection. Apparently, getting rich is harder than social-media influencers make it seem, so he avoided financial success entirely to become an automotive journalist and drive new cars for a living. After earning a journalism degree at Central Michigan University and working at a daily newspaper, the years of basically burning money on failed project cars and lemon-flavored jalopies finally paid off when Car and Driver hired him. His garage currently includes a 2010 Acura RDX, a manual '97 Chevy Camaro Z/28, and a '90 Honda CRX Si.