All the New CarPlay Features in IOS 26
Apple didn’t build its own car , but it did give us CarPlay . With iOS 26, CarPlay is getting some nice improvements, including a better design, the ability to increase font size, and helpful accessibility features . Here’s everything new coming to CarPlay with Apple’s upcoming update:
Widgets and Live Actions
With iOS 26, Live Activities are coming to CarPlay. These pop-ups let you keep track of important updates without touching your phone or head unit. Live Activities on your iPhone are useful for tracking deliveries, flight statuses, and more, and while not all iOS use cases will be relevant here, some of them will be available in CarPlay, too. (I think the flight status feature will be especially useful for airport pickups and drop-offs.)
You don’t have to do anything to see Live Activities in CarPlay. As long as it’s visible on your iPhone, it’ll show up in the CarPlay panel or appear as a pop-up window on top of other apps, like your navigation app. Apple says you’ll be able to turn off Live Activities if you don’t want to see them, and even control their appearance by setting different focus modes.
CarPlay also adds widget support, including things like calendar entries, weather, and sunrise/sunset times. You can choose which widgets you see in the CarPlay dashboard by going to Settings > General > CarPlay on your iPhone , selecting your car, and choosing widgets.
New compact view of incoming calls
The redesigned CarPlay with iOS 26 now includes a compact view. For example, when you receive a phone call, it will appear as a small pop-up on the screen instead of taking up more space. This means that other important information, such as driving directions, won’t be hidden when you receive a phone call.
Several message updates
With iOS 26, the Messages app in CarPlay will let you use Tapbacks, Apple’s term for responding to text messages with emoji. This will let you quickly tap an emoji to respond to someone through your car’s display. Messages will also let you view pinned conversations on your iPhone, making it easier to send messages to people you frequently communicate with.
Brand new icons
Yes, Liquid Glass is coming to your car, too. The iOS 26 icons have migrated to CarPlay. Whether you love them or not, you’ll see this new design on your car’s display.
Improved accessibility features
CarPlay with iOS 26 will also support Large Text, which increases the font size and makes text easier to read on a car screen. Apple is also adding Sound Recognition to CarPlay, which will notify drivers and passengers when iOS detects certain sounds. Notifications can alert you when CarPlay detects sirens, a baby crying, honking, or other important sounds.