Apple’s CarPlay And Google’s Android Auto Coming To BMW Vehicles

BMW CEO Harald Krüger has confirmed that the automaker will make Apple’s CarPlay and Google’s Android Auto available in its future vehicles.

This move may cause concern for some, as integrating third-party infotainment systems in cars means that they will have access to customer data. As a way to keep data controlled only by the automakers, BMW, Audi and Daimler recently bought Nokia HERE. However, it appears that BMW subsequently had a change of heart, as the German automaker has announced its plan to support CarPlay and Android Auto in its future cars.

Krüger has officially stated that both platforms will be integrated in BMW’s future models, with the announcement being made during the company’s quarterly earnings report.

“We want our customers to be able to make full use of their smartphone’s features in the car as well,” Krüger said. “Thus, we are going to integrate Apple’s CarPlay and Google’s Android Auto into our vehicles. Obviously, it is not in the interest of our customers to give third-party providers access to their data. For us, the protection of our customers’ data is top priority.”

Rumors about BMW’s integration with CarPlay and Android Auto first surfaced in September, but nothing official was announced until this week.

He believes that autonomous driving and connectivity in cars will play a key role in the future of the auto industry, with BMW planning to begin its introduction of CarPlay and Android Auto in 2016-2017, rolling out the feature model by model.

Speculation that Apple might want to partner with BMW as both companies explore the possibility of working together on the development of self-driving cars continues, and the move to include CarPlay in BMW’s future vehicles may be the first step in an evolving relationship between the two companies. When Apple CEO Tim Cook and his team met with BMW in July, Cook refused to shed light on the reason for the visit, while BMW said that it holds “regular talks with companies from the telecom and IT industries, including Apple, about vehicle connectivity topics,” but the German automaker made it clear that they were not in talks about building a car together at that time.

Although both the tech and auto industries have been trying to uncover details about Apple’s long-rumored “Project Titan” car development initiative, official details have been hard to come by. Perhaps BMW’s support of Apple’s CarPlay will lead to additional information about the potential of a more involved collaboration between the automaker and tech giant in the future.