Rivian has no plans to adopt Apple CarPlay on its electric vehicles. However, over the past few months, the vehicle manufacturer has been adding a few cool Apple features. For example, in December, the company added Car Key support for some of its latest EVs. Now, according to Rivian Trackr, an upcoming software update will bring Apple Watch support for its vehicles. With that, users will be able to open their vehicle with the app and also unlock a few other perks.
In other words, the Apple Watch app will turn drivers’ wrists into a control panel for the vehicle. They will be able to access core remote functions, such as triggering the alarm, venting windows, and controlling the interior temperature using the Digital Crown. Up to four quick actions can be accessed with just a tap. Still, the key addition is that the Apple Watch app will let owners of Gen 1 Rivian vehicles (model year 2024 or earlier) unlock doors using the Rivian Apple Watch companion app, while other digital car keys remain available only on second-generation Rivian models.
Rivian and Tesla keep adding built-in Apple experiences
While Rivian’s CEO insists he doesn’t plan to add CarPlay to his vehicles, Tesla plans to support CarPlay within the regular Tesla experience users already have. Tesla is also considering offering Apple Car Key support.
Both Tesla and Rivian have built-in Apple Music support, which delivers a more familiar experience for hardcore Apple fans. Even though the lack of CarPlay limits the ability to connect your phone to play your favorite podcasts, audiobooks, or reply to iMessages, it’s interesting to see Tesla planning to go a step further for its customers.
It’s unclear when Rivian will release the Apple Watch app for drivers, but this update shouldn’t take too long to land, as Rivian Trackr tags the update as the 2026.03 update, which suggests March 2026. As for Tesla, Bloomberg says the company will soon reveal more about its plans to offer CarPlay support on its vehicles. That said, these companies aren’t considering support for CarPlay Ultra, which will reportedly come to at least one vehicle of another manufacturer this year. Besides that, Ferrari also recently announced Luce, its first EV, designed in partnership with Apple’s former design boss, and its interface resemblance to CarPlay Ultra is incredible.
