Breaking Up with CarPlay: Retaking the Dash
In 2023, GM announced a decision to remove CarPlay and Android Auto functionality from its upcoming EVs, making it the first major automaker to abandon these platforms in a significant way. This decision marks a noteworthy shift in the automotive industry, reflecting a growing concern among automakers regarding the control over user experience and valuable consumer data.
Reclaiming Control
Since their introduction a decade ago, CarPlay and Android Auto have dominated the infotainment landscape, offering drivers familiar interfaces and seamless integration with their personal devices. However, this convenience comes at a cost for automakers:
Abandonment of Engagement: OEMs give up direct engagement with their customers.
Loss of Insights: OEMs lose valuable data on user behavior and preferences, crucial for tailoring services and developing new features.
Branding Opportunities: Control over the user interface is lost, reducing opportunities for branding and differentiation.
Redundant Investment: OEMs still need to provide a suite of infotainment software for drivers who don’t use smartphone integration, even if this software remains largely unused.
Voice Assistant Discrepancies: CarPlay and Android Auto often control only the apps, requiring users to juggle multiple voice assistants.
User Interface Issues: In many vehicles, accessing vehicle controls requires exiting the smartphone integration service’s interface.
GM's decision to eliminate third-party platforms in specific vehicles aligns with a broader ambition to fully own the customer experience. With its proprietary Google-based system, previously branded as Ultifi, GM aims to integrate more deeply with its vehicles' functions and keep all pertinent data within its ecosystem. This approach allows for a more tailored driving experience, optimizing route planning and battery management in real-time using data inaccessible through third-party interfaces.
Consumer Reactions are Shifting to Favorable
Transitioning away from popular platforms like CarPlay and Android Auto is challenging. Early reports from users of the 2024 Chevy Blazer EV equipped with GM’s experience have been mixed, citing issues from endless reboot loops to non-functional window switches and blank screens. These are typical growing pains in software development and should be addressed swiftly through updates.
Tim Levin, a senior reporter at InsideEVs, shared a recent experience where he switched back and forth between CarPlay and GM’s native infotainment system in the Cadillac Lyric. He concluded that he enjoyed the built-in experience far more than CarPlay’s. It was superior in most ways and made better use of the display. He didn’t find himself missing CarPlay.
Austin Carr and David Welch of Bloomberg have also given positive feedback on GM's infotainment platform. They noted that while the interface took some getting used to, it provided significant advantages, such as the ability to customize cross-dash interfaces and monitor battery usage while playing media. A standout feature for them was the system's capability to estimate range and include charging stations along the route. Additionally, they appreciated the freedom from relying on their phones and the convenience of not having to switch between interfaces. This independence from external devices contributed to a more seamless and integrated driving experience.
Challenges to Overcome
When using a built-in experience, Levin noted the limitation of being stuck with Google Maps and Google’s voice assistant, which may not suit users relying on Apple Maps, Music or Siri. Many users miss CarPlay due to perceived inaccuracies in in-car navigation and the absence of Apple Music. Owners also noted the software presents EV charger locations but fails to report their occupancy, a feature phone apps provide.
Smartphone integration services also offer continuity between phone and car for tasks like listening to podcasts or getting directions from calendar appointments. They simplify user profile switching and data privacy in a primitive but intuitively obvious way: each driver has a phone, and the connected phone contains the data. Renting a car with CarPlay doesn’t end up leaving past destinations on the vehicle when the driver returns it.
With the rise of electric vehicles, it has become increasingly important for OEMs to own the customer experience. Managing charging is a primary concern for consumers. Currently, many drivers can use their vehicle with the CarPlay interface, satisfying all their infotainment needs. CarPlay automatically opens upon connection, and drivers rarely need to exit it, except for specific vehicle functions like checking a surround-view camera image. This reliance on CarPlay results in a loss of OEM branding but, more critically, would frustrate drivers if they had to leave CarPlay to check charging levels and estimated range or use a native navigation interface for charge-aware routing.
CarPlay and Android Auto provide a consistent and familiar interface for customers, no matter the vehicle. This convenience eliminates the learning curve for users but reduces opportunities for branding, differentiation, and owning the full customer experience within the vehicle. As OEMs shift towards proprietary systems, they must ensure these systems are robust, intuitive, and offer clear advantages over existing platforms to justify the transition and enhance the overall customer experience.
Privacy and Winning Trust
While enhancing user experience is a key driver behind GM's strategy, ownership, control, and access to data are equally significant. Owning the data stream enables GM to monetize information through targeted marketing and subscription services. However, this control raises privacy issues, highlighted by past incidents where GM faced criticism for selling detailed driver data to insurance risk assessors, as reported by The New York Times.
In this particular case, drivers were enrolled in Smart Driver+, a driving gamification program described by GM as a way to improve one's driving. On the back end, Smart Driver+ was logging incidents of hard braking, rapid acceleration, swerving, and speeding. Insurers were then using this data to raise the rates of their customers. Given how the purchasing experience was implemented, a new car buyer could not opt into OnStar but opt out of Smart Driver+ at the dealership.
Consumer data can provide valuable insights and offer customers a better experience, but it must be used in a way that doesn’t betray the customer.
Will This Become an Industry Trend?
GM’s decision could set a precedent in the automotive industry, prompting other automakers to reconsider their dependence on Apple and Google’s platforms. Only time will tell if other automakers follow this pattern but one thing is certain, all automakers will have their eye on GM to see if they can pull this off.
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