ChatGPT begins supporting CarPlay full voice mode, while Gemini and Claude are still in line

OpenAI updated the ChatGPT iPhone app on March 31, officially adding CarPlay support, becoming the first mainstream AI application to be listed on the platform.
(Background: Nvidia CEO Jensen Huang: English-language media is “bloodbath”-level harsh on computer science, and arts and humanities majors are the real tech darlings of the AI era)
(Additional context: Musk says FSD is 10x safer than humans, but Robotaxi real-world testing shows the collision rate is 4x that of humans)

According to 9to5Mac, Apple released iOS 26.4 on March 24, and for the first time added a “voice conversational apps” category to CarPlay. Before that, CarPlay strictly limited app types, allowing only functions such as audio, navigation, and charging to be listed. Today, OpenAI announced that it will follow up on CarPlay immediately, moving into “conversational AI services” for driving and grabbing an early foothold.

Image source: 9to5mac

What can ChatGPT on CarPlay do?

The CarPlay version of ChatGPT is a pure voice interface—on-screen there are only two buttons: “End” and “Mute.” There’s no text and no images. The experience is similar to the ChatGPT voice conversation mode on iPhone, but it doesn’t support a language wake word, so you have to tap the app manually to start the conversation. It also can’t control vehicle functions or iPhone settings.

Image source: 9to5mac

In terms of competitive rivals, with iOS 26.4 Apple also opened CarPlay authorization for Gemini and Claude, but as of today neither has launched. For now, ChatGPT is temporarily the only released version.

However, compared with Tesla’s Grok assistant already built in, the gap is still pretty obvious, because Grok can directly control vehicle functions—after all, they’re both products from people with the surname Ma—whereas the current ChatGPT version can’t do that.

Many Tesla owners say Grok is “useful way more than they expected,” and some also question why you need AI chat while driving. The truth is, whether you chat with real human passengers or with an AI, long-distance trips really won’t be that boring.