Apple’s annual Worldwide Developer Conference (WWDC) consistently brings exciting announcements for its ecosystem, and WWDC 2025 was no exception, particularly for drivers. Apple unveiled a significant update coming to CarPlay with iOS 26, designed to revolutionize how the system adapts to the myriad of vehicle display shapes and sizes found in modern cars.
The headline feature introduced is Smart Display Zoom. This innovative capability directly addresses the challenge posed by increasingly diverse car screens, moving beyond the traditional rectangular format. As Apple CarPlay engineer Olivia Hess explained in a developer video, “Vehicle screens come in many shapes and sizes.”
Smart Display Zoom is engineered to make CarPlay work smarter on these varied displays. When enabled via the Settings in CarPlay, the feature automatically resizes on-screen elements. This allows CarPlay to utilize more of the available screen real estate effectively.
A key benefit for users is the potential to fit an extra row of app icons on their vehicle’s display. For drivers who use numerous apps with CarPlay, this seemingly small change can significantly reduce scrolling and make launching frequently used apps quicker and less distracting while on the road. It aims to make navigating the CarPlay interface much less of a hassle, regardless of your car’s unique screen layout.
While initially available in a developer beta following the WWDC 2025 announcement, Smart Display Zoom is scheduled to arrive in a public beta next month. Apple anticipates the feature will be included in the final public release of iOS 26 by September of this year.
Beyond the display optimization, iOS 26 brings several other welcome enhancements to CarPlay. These updates include a more compact view for incoming calls, preventing them from obstructing crucial navigation directions at critical moments. Drivers will also gain access to Tapbacks (emoji responses) and the ability to use pinned conversations directly within the Messages app on CarPlay. Furthermore, the update will allow widgets and Live Activities to be reflected on the vehicle’s infotainment system, bringing more dynamic information to the driving interface. Apple confirmed that these additional features will also be part of the upcoming CarPlay Ultra experience.
