Okay, so it looks like Apple is finally opening up CarPlay to third-party AI chatbots. That means when iOS 26.4 rolls out, you might be able to use services like ChatGPT, Gemini, or Claude right from your car's dashboard.

I think that this is a big deal because, before now, CarPlay basically limited you to Siri for voice commands. The official CarPlay Developer Guide mentions voice-based conversational apps as a supported type, which wasn't the case before. What I get from this, is that Apple is implementing a new voice control screen that will allow apps to provide visual feedback to users when they are using these voice based conversational apps!

If you are a company that wants to make your chatbot work with CarPlay, you'll need to update your app to support this new voice control screen and get the special permission. I believe that it can be a little hurdle, but if you already have a chatbot app, I suppose it's a worthy one.

CarPlay has always supported third-party apps, but Apple is very picky about which ones they allow. Their main concern is avoiding driver distraction, and I think that it makes sense. Now, companies like OpenAI and Google can create CarPlay apps, which I didn't expect to see so soon.

With this new integration, you'll be able to ask ChatGPT questions hands-free while you're driving. It seems like the apps won't be able to control things like your car's functions or your iPhone directly, which, honestly, I believe it's a good thing.

Also, there won't be a "wake word" to activate these apps. You'll still have to open the app manually to use the chatbot, which I believe can be a little bit annoying, but I am sure that they will improve this in the future.

I am waiting for the customizable voice control screen that I think will offer a much better chatbot experience that is optimized for driving.

iOS 26.4 is currently in beta, and I expect it to be released sometime this spring.