First experience of Apple CarPlay Ultra: It's great, but it's "collectively boycotted" by car manufacturers.
Two distinct narratives about Apple's CarPlay Ultra unfolded almost simultaneously.
On the one hand, there are the first - wave reviews from media outlets such as The Verge and Top Gear. After experiencing the Aston Martin DBX707, various media almost unanimously gave positive feedback on the actual performance of CarPlay Ultra, believing that it offers a seamless experience and powerful functions, marking a leap forward for Apple's in - car system.
On the other hand, there is the cold, hard business reality revealed by the Financial Times. The report points out that automotive giants like Mercedes - Benz, Audi, and Volvo, once regarded as potential partners for CarPlay Ultra, have publicly expressed their resistance to Apple's dashboard revolution.
Image source: The Verge
An ideal cockpit highly praised for its product experience has encountered such strong headwinds in the business world. What exactly is going on behind this?
To answer this question, we first need to go back to the basics and take a deep look at what the real - world experience of CarPlay Ultra is like.
A Revolution in In - car Systems from Apple
An interesting question is: Why was Aston Martin, a brand that had just invested heavily in developing its own new system, the first to embrace CarPlay Ultra?
This is not a technical compromise but a business - savvy decision.
Aston Martin claims that this is a direct response to the core needs of its customers - the customers specifically requested it. The brand says that for owners with multiple luxury cars, CarPlay provides a sense of "familiarity" across different brands, greatly reducing the learning cost when switching between vehicles and making every car easy to drive.
In the actual experience, this "seamless" integration is evident throughout.
After the vehicle starts, the system wakes up immediately, and a "Hello" welcome message similar to that when setting up a new iPhone appears on the screen. You can hardly feel the loading process, as if it were the vehicle's native interface.
The Verge mentioned that when you need to adjust the vehicle's unique advanced audio settings, there's no need to exit CarPlay. The native settings menu will appear seamlessly as a "pop - up" within the CarPlay environment and disappear after use, maximizing the continuity of the experience.
Image source: The Verge
This two - way in - depth integration is also reflected in the interaction with physical buttons. Motor1 pointed out that when the driver presses the button to turn off the assisted - driving function on the center console, a notification will pop up synchronously within the CarPlay interface to confirm that the function has been disabled, which proves that the information between the vehicle and the system is communicated in real - time.
Image source: Motor1
The innovation of the dashboard is the highlight of this upgrade. It offers a switching logic similar to that of Apple Watch faces. Users can freely switch between multiple modes, such as the classic "dual - dial" theme iconic of Aston Martin, Apple's minimalist style, or full - screen map navigation, using the buttons on the steering wheel.
Image source: The Verge
Image source: The Verge
Apple's attention to detail is also evident in the small things. Top Gear found that when they connected their UK - region iPhones, the system automatically switched the temperature scale from Fahrenheit to Celsius. Even the spelling of the word "favorites" changed from the American "favorites" to the British "favourites".
Image source: The Verge
Of course, this newly launched system is not perfect. All the experiences so far are based on the beta version. Motor1 discovered during testing that CarPlay Ultra runs smoothly on the newer iPhone 15, but on the still - supported iPhone 13 Pro Max, there were "unbearable lags".
In terms of the cooperation model, Apple has shown unprecedented flexibility.
It is reported that car manufacturers do not need to pay Apple a licensing fee to integrate CarPlay Ultra. They only need to bear their own integration and development costs. What Apple provides is more like a "toolbox" or a "blank template", and the car manufacturers' engineering teams can customize the final presentation according to their brand image and vehicle functions.
Image source: The Verge
Technically, CarPlay Ultra is not what many people think of as "invading vehicle data". It is more like a highly capable plug - in that combines three technologies: mirroring the phone, presenting vehicle - specific information (such as speed) in an Apple - like way, and allowing native functions (such as the rear - view camera) to penetrate the CarPlay interface.
A key fact is that CarPlay Ultra does not access the vehicle's core CAN bus network. It only passively receives the information provided by the vehicle instead of actively delving into the system. In terms of data, car manufacturers and Apple have drawn a clear security line.
Aston Martin says that this is not just a business cooperation but also a "mutual learning" process. Apple can gain in - depth knowledge of complex automotive safety regulations, while car manufacturers can learn Apple's top - notch interaction design concepts up close.
Ultimately, all these experiences and the cooperation model point to the most core and often overlooked value of CarPlay Ultra - "Futureproofing", which means keeping the vehicle's digital experience up - to - date forever.
For car owners, this is a common pain point. The in - car system that runs smoothly when a new car is purchased often starts to show signs of aging after three or four years, or stops being updated. Even if the manufacturer continues to provide OTA updates, they are often restricted by the old hardware's computing power, resulting in new functions not working properly and old functions becoming less smooth.
However, CarPlay Ultra will evolve with each new version of iOS. This means that as long as your iPhone is updated, your in - car system experience will always be up - to - date.
Image source: Motor1
For an expensive car that you plan to own for a long time, this is undoubtedly an attractive value - preservation solution.
Of course, if you don't like it, you can always use Aston Martin's in - car system.
A War over the "Soul" of the Car
It's not just users who may have opinions. In the view of some car manufacturers, CarPlay Ultra may pose a potential risk of disrupting their core business models.
When a product offers an excellent experience, its impact on the industry is no longer just a technical issue but a business decision related to a company's long - term strategy. This is the reality that the global automotive industry faces after the release of CarPlay Ultra.
Last week, a clear - cut stance of resistance led by mainstream car manufacturers was made public in a Financial Times report.
European luxury brands represented by Mercedes - Benz, Audi, and Volvo have clearly stated that they have no plans to integrate CarPlay Ultra for now. An executive from Renault even directly told Apple: "Don't try to invade our system."
Behind this are two major considerations for car manufacturers regarding future dominance.
Firstly, it's about maintaining brand uniqueness. In the era of "software - defined cars", the dashboard and the center console screen are the core channels for brands to connect with users and showcase their differences. Car manufacturers are investing billions of dollars to create unique digital experiences, so they cannot accept having this crucial user - interaction interface replaced by Apple's unified style.
Secondly, it's about protecting future core business. Car manufacturers are striving to shift from selling hardware to providing software subscriptions, function upgrades, and other services to generate continuous revenue.
Simon Middleton, a partner at McKinsey, pointed out: "Western car manufacturers are trying to figure out how to grow in a world where car sales have reached or are approaching their peak. In the highly competitive premium segment, you're also trying to differentiate yourself." Software and services are the most important sources of business growth in their plans.
Under these two business - model considerations, there is an even deeper concern: data. Although the cooperation model with Aston Martin has clearly defined the data boundaries and solved the privacy issue, many large manufacturers are more worried about losing the ability to analyze, operate, and commercialize user data.
As a result, car manufacturers are in a huge dilemma.
A 2023 McKinsey survey clearly quantified this dilemma: Nearly half of American consumers would give up buying a car if it didn't support CarPlay or Android Auto. Moreover, among CarPlay users, as many as 85% prefer using it over the car's native system.
This huge pressure from the consumer market is in sharp contrast to the car manufacturers' strategic intentions, leading to a clear division in the global automotive industry.
Super - luxury brands like Aston Martin and Porsche aim to meet the ecological needs of their customers. The Hyundai Group also believes that fully embracing CarPlay can help them attract more consumers.
The "traditionalists" are represented by German luxury brands determined to develop their own in - car systems such as MB.OS and MMI, as well as General Motors in North America. With their large scale, they face strategic pressure not only from Apple but also from the East -
When facing increasingly advanced technological products from Chinese competitors, they must build their own software technology barriers.
At this point, the future of CarPlay Ultra is no longer just about whether the product is good or bad.
Its emergence has become a complex game involving control, brand, data, and money. This is not just a problem for Apple. Google also faced similar resistance when promoting its Android Automotive system.
In essence, this is a competition between the technology industry and the traditional automotive manufacturing industry for the dominance of the user's "third space". And the emergence of CarPlay Ultra has intensified this industry conflict.
This article is from the WeChat official account "Dong Che Hui". Author: Li Hua. Republished by 36Kr with permission.