Android Auto is now one (screen) size fits all

This week at I/O, Google rolled out a series of major updates to Android Auto that include better sizing for non-traditional screens, YouTube video streaming, support for widgets, and of course, More AI-powered Gemini features. The company also announced some updates for cars running Google’s native software, including the ability to ask Gemini questions specific to the car you’re driving.

First, the screen size. It used to be that all in-car displays had the same basic shape. But now the standard rectangle has evolved into a variety of curved, panoramic, swooping and even circular displays. Google is rising to the moment, announcing a new update that more precisely customizes Android Auto to fit any screen size.

Previously, phone display systems behaved similarly to older videos on widescreen TVs, placing a standard rectangular interface within a larger viewing area with unused margins around it. Patrick Brady, vice president of Android Automotive at Google, said that Google is now trying to adopt the full shape of every vehicle’s screen, citing unconventional screens such as the curved Lucid Air screen or the MINI Cooper’s circular screen.

“You have the new BMW Neue Klasse that has an irregular trapezoid. I don’t even know what it looks like. It’s a kind of parallelogram,” Brady said in an interview. “I was like, man, I need to get back to engineering classes.” Brady said the new “full margins” design will allow apps like Google Maps to fill the entire screen regardless of geometry.

This will come in handy when streaming video to YouTube through Android Auto, another update arriving later this year. This feature, which only works while the car is parked, supports 4K video playback at 60 frames per second, in addition to spatial audio support using Dolby Atmos. All of this content will be generated from the user’s phone and not from a fully integrated system. The car notifies the phone when it is in park mode, which opens the video function. According to Brady, users have been pestering the company for its ability to watch movies or videos while charging their electric cars, waiting in parking lots, or sitting outside of schools.

Google is also bringing its new Material Three Expressive design language to Android Auto. When it was released last year, My colleague Alison Johnson described It’s a “youthful trend” for Android, “full of vibrant animations, bold fonts, and vibrant colors absolutely everywhere.” Now, that design language is coming to Android Auto, which will inherit customization cues from the user’s phone. This includes color palettes and wallpaper-based themes, giving Android Auto a more personalized and visually integrated look.

Another major update is support for widgets, where Android users can view their own custom widgets for things like sports scores, smart home controls, one-click calling shortcuts, garage door shortcuts, lighting controls, and more. Users will be able to use Google’s Gemini AI Assistant to access their gadgets using natural language. For example, a user can request sports scores, upcoming schedules, or calendar information, and Gemini will generate the appropriate response in Android Auto.

A new feature called “Magic Cue” can analyze incoming messages and proactively display useful information. If someone sends you a text message asking for someone’s address or phone number, Gemini can retrieve the relevant information from your phone and suggest a response with one tap. Brady says this will hopefully reduce unsafe phone interactions while driving.

“We’re doing studies on driver distraction in a simulator,” Brady said. “We test everything.”

The Gemini app also improves as an intermediary with other apps on your phone. For example, drivers can now ask Gemini to place a pickup order through the Starbucks app. Instead of relying on proprietary API integrations, Gemini can run apps like Starbucks and DoorDash in the background to place orders through Android Auto, Brady explained. Again, we hope this will make drivers less willing to use their phones while speeding down the road.

View the new “holistic navigation” in Google Maps, which The company announced earlier this yearnow coming to Android Auto. When you start navigating, the map will now feature updated colors, detailed 3D buildings, elevated roads, realistic terrain, and even green spaces.

Brady says a smarter, more convenient and more customizable Android Auto helps narrow the gap between the phone’s display and embedded software. Either way, Google usually wins. Even vehicles that don’t allow a phone display, like EVs from Rivian, Chevy, and Cadillac, eventually end up using the company’s native Android Automotive and Google’s embedded systems as their foundation. Many Android Auto functions end up in built-in Android Automotive systems over time, and vice versa.

However, there are still limitations. For example, Android Auto users cannot control their car’s HVAC system through their phone view. Other vehicle systems, such as drive modes, driver assistance features, and radio settings, also cannot be modified through Android Auto. But even some of those differences disappear quickly, Brady said.

Advanced features like Google Maps communicating directly with an electric vehicle’s powertrain to automatically add charging stations or pre-condition the battery before reaching for the charger were only possible through deeply integrated systems. However, Google is working with automakers to allow Google Maps to run through Android Auto to achieve the same results.

“I think those worlds are blending as phones become more capable, cars become more capable from a software perspective, and (improved) integration between them,” Brady said.