Apple quietly reveals CarPlay's big video upgrade in iOS 26, but there's a catch

8 hours ago 13

The upcoming Apple CarPlay interface (Image credit: Apple)

Apple CarPlay is set to support video playback
The update will be added with iOS 26
However, automakers will need to opt in to the feature

As with every iOS update, iOS 26 will bring with it some changes for the CarPlay interface that appears when your iPhone is connected to your vehicle – and Apple has now quietly confirmed that one of those changes will be support for video playback.

This wasn't mentioned at the grand reveal of iOS 26 at WWDC 2025, but as spotted by MacRumors, it's now listed as a feature on the Apple developers website. We're expecting iOS 26 to roll out to the masses in September.

"AirPlay video in the car enables people to watch their favorite videos from iPhone right on their CarPlay display when they aren't driving," the site says. "Integrate support for CarPlay with AirPlay video to enable this feature in your car."

And that's the catch – automakers will need to enable this feature separately to the rest of the CarPlay functionality, so it's possible that it won't appear in every vehicle, and may be restricted by local safety regulations around the world.

Keeping up

Videos would of course be too distracting for drivers, which is why this will only work when a car is parked up. It's possible that Apple hasn't mentioned it before now because it's not certain how widely this is going to be supported, at least initially.

The AirPlay streaming standard being implemented here is the default one deployed by Apple on its other devices, including the Apple TV 4K box. It's worth noting that while many iOS apps support AirPlay for streaming, Netflix doesn't.

This is a move Apple had to make really: built-in options from automakers like Tesla, BMW, and Mercedes already offer video playback, and the feature is on the way to Android Auto too. Apple won't want its CarPlay interface to fall behind.

We should get more details from Apple in due course. The public beta for iOS 26 is due to launch any day now – which means anyone can test out the software in advance – before it's finalized and pushed out later this year with the iPhone 17 series.

Dave is a freelance tech journalist who has been writing about gadgets, apps and the web for more than two decades. Based out of Stockport, England, on TechRadar you'll find him covering news, features and reviews, particularly for phones, tablets and wearables. Working to ensure our breaking news coverage is the best in the business over weekends, David also has bylines at Gizmodo, T3, PopSci and a few other places besides, as well as being many years editing the likes of PC Explorer and The Hardware Handbook.

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