General Motors is preparing a major technological shift. The American automaker has confirmed that it will progressively eliminate Apple CarPlay and Android Auto from all its future vehicles, both electric and gasoline-powered, by 2028.
In its place, GM will integrate Google's Gemini artificial intelligence as well as a new "hands-free, eyes-off" autonomous driving platform, which will debut on the 2028 Cadillac Escalade IQ. The announcements were made during the "GM Forward" event in New York, where leadership outlined its software strategy for the coming years.
What is Google Gemini?
Starting in 2026, GM vehicles will begin to receive Google Gemini, a conversational assistant that uses natural language to interact with the driver. The assistant will allow users to control the vehicle, plan routes, adjust settings, and access various online services, all without going through a smartphone.
GM specifies that some models produced since 2016 may receive a retroactive software update. In parallel, the automaker is developing its own internal artificial intelligence platform, though it hasn’t specified a deployment timeline.
Official end of CarPlay and Android Auto
The first absence of CarPlay and Android Auto will be in the 2028 Cadillac Escalade IQ, before the compatibility is gradually removed from the entire GM lineup. The new models will use GM's in-house multimedia system, designed to better integrate vehicle functions and offer over-the-air updates. According to GM, this approach will unify the digital experience and reduce dependency on Apple and Google, a trend already started on its electric vehicles.
A new generation of autonomous driving
The automaker will also launch a new generation of its driver-assistance system in 2028—an evolved derivative of the current Super Cruise.
This technology will offer a true "hands-free" and "eyes-off" driving experience under certain safe conditions. The system will rely on a set of sensors, cameras, radars, and lidar, allowing the driver to completely let go of the steering wheel on the highway, while remaining ready to take back control as needed.
GM Energy: electricity at home
Another new development: starting in 2026, the GM Energy division will offer its Energy Home domestic system for lease, combining a stationary battery and bidirectional charging. GM electric vehicle owners will be the first to have access, before it is opened to the general public.
A new post-"Ultra Cruise" era
These announcements are part of GM's technological restructuring, initiated after abandoning the Ultra Cruise project and reducing the activities of its Cruise subsidiary (autonomous vehicles). The automaker no longer aims to double its revenue by 2030, but is now betting on digital services, software, and energy as its main growth levers.