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June 2022

Infotainment

Apple announces deeper
integration of CarPlay
10-minute InsightAt Apple’s WWDC event in June 2022 they announced a newversion of CarPlay that promises much greater levels offunctionality and integration than is currently available –including an expansion into the instrument cluster. Although it
remains reliant on the user’s smartphone, it looks and feels
more ‘native’ than any previous smartphone integration
solution.
In this bi-weekly insight we analyze how the industry is
likely to respond to Apple’s move and what it means forthe much-anticipated Apple Car.

Target audience
Engineering / Strategy

Focus market(s)GlobalMarketing/ Product Planning1

What is happening?
Key takeaway
Incorporates cluster
data (speed, RPM,fuel, temp, etc)

Adjustable cluster UI(colors, layouts,dials, backgrounds)

Users able to add
their own widgets &control radio/HVAC

Works acrossdifferent display
sizes/configurations

Apple has announced an ambitious
upgrade to CarPlay, which if adopted
by OEMs would effectively take overmuch more of the IVI andInstrument Cluster UX.
• The new version of CarPlay includes
deeper integrations into the car,allowing users to control various
vehicle functions such as HVAC andtaking over the instrument cluster(note various features like
ADAS/settings will still require anOEM UX).
• Apple’s stated intention with thislatest move is to develop a more
unified, consistent and personalized
experience for drivers.

It’s the very best of your car and your iPhone- Apple• Although this still classifies as a
‘Brought-in’ solution as it relies on theuser’s smartphone, SBD expects thislevel of integration would require
more Apple software in the car – thistherefore begins to stray into a hybrid‘Native/Brought-in’ platform2

Why does it matter?
Key takeaway
CarPlay and Android Auto brokerecords when first introduced, withavailability rates across US models
reaching almost 100% within 5years (Wireless versions of bothfeatures are on a similar path). Will a
deeper-integrated Apple CarPlay
follow a similar trajectory?
• The short answer is ‘Probably not’ –even for car makers that embrace awholesale takeover of their cockpit
UX, a deeper integration will takelonger to develop, test and deploy.
• Deploying an ASIL-compliant
instrument cluster that relies on auser’s smartphone will be tough inthe short-term. A more likely scenario
is that car makers incrementallyenable deeper integrations over thecoming years, building some of theadditional functionality Apple hasannounced (e.g. HVAC control, widgetsupport, etc).
• Regardless of the speed, however,Apple in the car is here to stay.
Source: VehiclePlannerPlus, 2022
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Where next?
Key takeaway

1

Expect the first OEMs todemonstrate the new version ofApple CarPlay at the 2022 LA AutoShow or CES 2023

2

Early launches of some deeper
integrations may occur in the next 1-2years, but with limited functionality

3A ‘Full Vision’ solution, including
instrument cluster integration could
be launched by 2025

4

While not as fast as the initial CarPlay,SBD expects various OEMs to adopt thedeeper integrations in the next 3-5 years

FirstPOCs

First
launches

FutureOutlook

Deeperintegration

Wider
AdoptionAppleCar51-3yrs

3-5yrs

In parallel, the industry is starting to
get a fuller picture of what theeventual Apple Car could feel likeIn many ways we’ve seen this movie
play out before: tech company
launches new solution, some OEMs
feel pressure to become an early
adopter, other OEMs stand firmly
against adoption, and everyone
waits to see how consumers react.
• The first generation of Apple CarPlay
took 2-3 years from announcement tointroduction. Despite the deeper
integration, SBD expects a similar
timeline for the first introduction ofthis latest version of CarPlay, asarchitectures have modernized andvarious start-up OEMs with limited orno legacy will be capable of moving
fast. But widespread adoption will
likely take longer as many OEMs takea wait-and-see approach.
• The elephant in room remains AppleCar – although with every passing
year more and more of the Apple Car
experience becomes clear: CarPlay,Apple Maps, Apple Music, Apple Key,etc.

>5yrs
4

Who to watch out for?
Other Tech Giants
Google, Amazon, Baidu and Alibaba are among the various
tech giants that have equally large (although strategicallydifferent) ambitions for the car. Expect to see clarifications andextensions of their respective visions in the coming months.

AppleApple’s reach into
the car continues
to extend, as does
the continued
doubt amongst
OEMs about
if/when Apple will
pivot from being a
helpful partner toa daunting
competitor.

Early adopters
The most likely
early adopters will
be luxury OEMs,
niche OEMs or
start-up OEMs,
many of whom
have the agility andmotivation to act
fast. Expect other
OEMs to takelonger before
making a decision.

Tier-1 Suppliers
Although Apple is taking over some of the traditional Tier-1
supplier duties, many will be keen to show support for thedeeper integration required by CarPlay (particularly tosupport their ‘Cockpit-wide’ and consolidated ECU demos).

Key takeawayApple announcements always create
ripples in the market, pushing others
to react. Many companies will stayon the sidelines, waiting for moredetails to emerge before deciding
which way to jump. Others will feelpressure to react fast.
• Android Automotive and Google
Automotive Services has been thecenter of attention within the IVI
community for the last few years, andGoogle will be planning similar APIs to
support deeper integrations. Apple’s
solution will challenge Google’s native
push, and other tech giants are
expected to also join in with their own
announcements in the coming
months, giving OEMs more choices.
• On the adopter front, the most likely
early adopters will be lower-volume
OEMs (niche, start-ups, luxury), whowill need to rely heavily on Tier-1
suppliers that are keen to prove theirhardware and SW-integration
capabilities.

5How should you react?

12
3

Wait
Announcements from Apple trigger questions
among automotive executives, and often
create an urgency to adapt existing strategies.
However, it is important to highlight that theseare still early days – only Polestar hasannounced plans to support it, but given thelack of technical/commercial details available
from Apple it is unlikely any OEM or suppliercan know for sure when they would launch.

Authors
Alex Oyler
Director

Related SBD Reports

Evaluate
Deeper integrations of Apple CarPlay will be
an attractive proposition for some car makers.
As a first step, understanding the technicalrequirements (from chipset to cloud) ofimplementing deeper integrations will help
determine how commercially and technicallyfeasible it is on existing platforms.

Jump
Future versions of CarPlay will make it harderto support the ‘All-of-the-above’ strategy thathas defined IVI – supporting multiple types ofintegrated solutions alongside OEM-based
native ones. Moving forward, success will be
contingent on clearly choosing what not to do.

Andrew Hart
CEO

Ref:536
ConnectedCarForecast

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in AutoRelated SBD Consultancy▪ UX Benchmarking▪ Tech forecasts▪ Product planning support▪ Tech SWOTs

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