GM Is Already Bringing Apple CarPlay Back After Discontinuing It

It's been less than a year since GM announced it would be discontinuing support for Apple CarPlay in its cars. When the announcement first dropped, many of us couldn't help but scratch our heads and wonder why GM and other car companies were cutting CarPlay out. No matter what the company's reason was, it seems GM has decided that cutting out Apple wasn't quite the play it hoped for, as the company debuted its newest UI for its vehicles this week, and right at the center is support for the two infotainment systems that Apple and Android fans have come to know and love — Apple CarPlay and Android Auto.

According to an announcement from GM, the new system will debut on the 2027 Chevrolet Silverado 1500 and the GMC Sierra 1500, with GM set to use that as a foundation to expand the UI to the rest of its broader lineup down the line. For now, of course, some of the biggest news of the release is that Apple users won't need to do away with CarPlay. Additionally, it seems that the company may have even redesigned the way that its own infotainment system works alongside CarPlay. It is important to note, too, that even though GM began phasing out Apple CarPlay support, it was still available in the older vehicles that offered it before. But, the company was definitely pushing to move away from CarPlay support overall. Thankfully, it's apparently backed up off that decision and found a way forward that won't fully alienate users.

Previously the CEO of GM, Mary Barra, argued that swapping between CarPlay and GM's built-in system was distracting and detracted from the overall usability of the system because of how clunky it could feel. This, along with GM's push to integrate Gemini directly into its system, likely played a big part in why the company was moving away from CarPlay support. However, now it seems that GM has found a way to make the two systems work more closely together.

The new UI has a more picture-in-picture like approach to the two user interfaces working together. This means that drivers won't have to leave CarPlay completely just to check in on something their vehicle handles within its native software. We already see something similar with how CarPlay handles multiple applications when in use — for instance, you can manage your music in Apple Music while also seeing directions through Apple Maps at the same time.

There are also plenty of other changes coming with the redesign, including new configurations that can stretch across more than 60 inches of display space in the cabins of the 2027 Silverado and Sierra. GM says it will also provide more customizable quick-access controls as well as physical controls to help those who don't want to rely purely on touch controls. Either way, this change is great news for Apple users who weren't looking forward to GM cutting out CarPlay, as they won't have to get used to an entirely new system just to listen to music or get directions while driving.