Overview
- Apple’s CarPlay Developer Guide in the iOS 26.4 developer beta adds a new category for “voice-based conversational apps,” permitting services like ChatGPT, Gemini, and Claude once their developers add support.
- Access requires a new CarPlay entitlement and a dedicated voice control template that prioritizes spoken interaction and minimizes on-screen text or imagery.
- Siri remains the system-level assistant in CarPlay, so third-party bots run as standalone apps without wake words and must be launched manually from the dashboard.
- Safety constraints bar these apps from controlling vehicle or iPhone functions and limit interfaces to shallow flows, with audio sessions active only during live voice use.
- iOS 26.4 is currently in developer beta with a public release expected in spring, and real-world availability will depend on app updates and Apple’s review as well as automakers’ CarPlay implementations.