The Apple iOS 26.4 update now includes ChatGPT on CarPlay, but not everyone is enthusiastic about interacting with an AI chatbot while driving.
According to 9to5Mac, Apple's update added support for "voice-based conversational apps" to CarPlay, allowing drivers and passengers to verbally communicate with AI chatbots.
The ChatGPT app via CarPlay doesn't show text conversations, and there is no wake word to use it, meaning you have to tap it to open it.
When ChatGPT in CarPlay is launched, only two buttons are visible on the screen: "End," which stops the session, or "Mute," which mutes the session, allowing drivers to talk with other passengers in the car without ChatGPT listening in.
Opinions on AI car assistants vary greatly among drivers.
"This is going to make long drives and traffic jams so much more productive and entertaining," wrote one person on X.
While some might appreciate the added connectivity, others speculated that the AI chatbot services will be ineffective, bothersome, or even dangerous, particularly when they malfunction unexpectedly or produce fabricated results.
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"This will literally kill people … Has any car safety [inspector] passed or approved this?" questioned one X user.
Another voiced their distaste for such AI-based features, writing "I would rather listen to chain saws than have GPT advanced voice mode speak to me while I drive."
Even Jimmy Fallon's The Tonight Show aired a parody sketch about this, highlighting the chatbot's roundabout responses that could make ChatGPT for CarPlay more of a hindrance than a help.
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Drivers can now use ChatGPT with Apple's CarPlay, but it looks questionable 🫣 #FallonTonight pic.twitter.com/MwN4U23Zz6
— The Tonight Show (@FallonTonight) April 2, 2026
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Save $1,000 this year 💸 Jake Peterson, a senior tech editor for LifeHacker, wrote about his experience with ChatGPT in CarPlay.
Peterson said it is "a driving-friendly version of familiar voice mode," though it "began hallucinating almost immediately," noting that the chatbot's responses lacked clarity and awareness.
The impact of ChatGPT via CarPlay on road safety is uncertain.
The AAA Foundation for Traffic Safety reported in 2020 that Apple CarPlay and Google's Android Auto are less distracting to drivers than cars' built-in infotainment systems, but acknowledged that these platforms can encourage potentially unsafe levels of distraction for drivers attempting complex tasks.
This is yet another example of the pervasiveness of artificial intelligence technologies in our everyday lives, whether we want to use these tools or not.
At this time, Apple CarPlay has not fully integrated an AI assistant into its platform, so drivers have the option to make their commutes AI-free.
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