Mercedes CEO Rejects Apple, Embraces Google, and Makes Bold Statement on CarPlay, Says Ola Källenius
Apple spent four years developing a strategic plan to replace Android Auto with its CarPlay software in cars, alongside its ambitious goal of creating the Apple Car. However, with the abandonment of the Apple Car project, the focus has shifted to promoting CarPlay on the dashboards of modern vehicles. As large smart screens become more prevalent in luxury cars, car manufacturers are increasingly looking to partner with trusted software providers such as Google, Apple, and even Samsung.
The CEO of Mercedes wants a comprehensive software architecture
In a recent interview with The Verge magazine, Mercedes CEO Ola Källenius categorically said “no” to Apple. Reason? Mercedes is looking for a “holistic software architecture” – something Google can do better. CEO Ola Källenius says clearly that he will not give Apple the screens of Mercedes cars. In other words, Mercedes doesn’t want to risk being trapped inside Apple’s gated ecosystem, where Apple only gets to decide what the screens inside the cars show and do.
“I fundamentally believe that the overall customer experience is our best and we serve you,” Mercedes Ola Källeniushe told The Verge in an interview.
Källenius emphasized that Mercedes’ own engineers are actively working on the screens inside the cars they sell. It’s about providing an in-car experience that Mercedes would never want to hand over to another company. He even mentioned that Mercedes is working with Apple’s big rival Google on a new navigation system powered by Google Maps. Google isn’t opposed to letting Mercedes engineers decide how the actual car experience works; thus the Mercedes team would be “strongly involved in the process”.
According to the report, Källenius may include “phone mirroring” services in cars, and Mercedes is not completely ruling out this feature like General Motors. For those who didn’t know, General Motors took steps to block Apple CarPlay and Android Auto in its EVs because the company believes it can offer a better and more “comprehensive software experience” than just mirroring smartphones.
Apple’s next-generation CarPlay – what can it do?
In 2022, Apple introduced the next generation of CarPlay, claiming it would “fundamentally change the way people interact with their vehicles,” as Apple planned to deeply integrate CarPlay into the car’s hardware. So how deep will this integration be? Apple said the CarPlay software will allow users to do things like control the radio or change the climate directly through CarPlay, and with vehicle information, CarPlay will show speed, fuel level, temperature and more on the instrument cluster. Even “personalize” their driving experience.
