Next-gen CarPlay on Audi vehicles is the closest we’ll get to an Apple Car – see it here

The next-gen CarPlay is a long-awaited revamp that Apple users have eagerly been waiting for. While the Apple Car dream is dead, Cupertino might bring its vision of an Apple vehicle with it.

Introduced a few years ago, it seems iOS 18.2 might finally bring support to this experience. Besides some redesigned icons found by MacRumors in the latest beta, the publication also found images filed in the EU by Audi highlighting how the next-gen CarPlay will look in their cars.

Interestingly enough, while Audi said back in June 2022 that it planned to offer this experience, we have yet to hear from the automaker about its specific plans. Still, images found by MacRumors contributor Aaron Peris show the integration between Apple CarPlay and the vehicle’s features, such as reclining the sea, controlling the air conditioner, etc.

These images aren’t different from what we’ve seen in the past. However, with Apple still promising that the first vehicles with the next-gen CarPlay will “arrive in 2024,” it’s possible that an announcement might be coming in the next few weeks once iOS 18.2 is released to all users.

By the end of 2023, Aston Martin and Porsche revealed their plans to use the next-gen CarPlay design in their cars. However, the automakers haven’t released any new vehicles supporting this feature.

Besides that, Apple released a few new features to the old CarPlay experience in iOS 18, such as:

• Announced Notifications support: Announce Notifications can read aloud your notification summaries when using AirPods or CarPlay.
• Spatial Audio: Drivers can now listen to Spatial Audio songs and albums available in Apple Music and third-party apps while connected to CarPlay. Vehicles with multichannel audio capabilities can enable an immersive sound experience. Spatial Audio with support for Dolby Atmos can also be implemented in compatible vehicles.
• Accessibility: Color Filters, Bold Text, Voice Control, and Sound Recognition accessibility settings are now available in CarPlay in IOS 18, providing a consistent experience between the iPhone and the vehicle.