CarPlay will let you play videos with iOS 26, but there are rules

• iOS 26 could let you AirPlay videos onto CarPlay soon
• Compatibility

After its debut in 2014, CarPlay took the automotive world by storm. It turned infotainment systems into sleek extensions of a driver’s iPhone and brought iOS to your dashboard. Apple might’ve failed with its own car, but it revolutionized most major manufacturers’ infotainment systems. But in its 12 years, CarPlay has never let you play videos in the car.

But that could change, at least in a limited way, if all goes according to plan. First mentioned on Apple’s developer site, ‘video in the car’ could let you AirPlay videos from your iPhone onto the CarPlay display. But, not so fast — that doesn’t mean you can stream YouTube videos while you’re cruising down I-95.

iOS 26 could let you AirPlay videos onto CarPlay soon

The rules and regulations

You can easily guess the first rule: to watch videos on CarPlay, your vehicle will have to be parked and unmoving. Any distractions while driving could prove fatal for both passengers and pedestrians, and staring at a video when you should be paying attention to the road is reckless and dangerous.

But if you’re parked outside your child’s karate class or sitting in the airport cell lot waiting for your partner to land, watching a video on CarPlay would be much more enjoyable than staring at your iPhone’s little screen. Being parked is an easy enough ask, so what’s the other catch?

Compatibility

Not everyone will have access

Of course, it can’t be that easy to watch videos in the car. Each vehicle manufacturer will have complete control over whether or not its cars will allow or support the feature in their infotainment systems — even if you’re in park. Apple may have laid the groundwork, but it’ll ultimately come down to your make and model.

However, no carmaker has announced any formal plans to support it, which is why no one has seen it in practice yet. Apps may need to integrate support, too, before you can AirPlay them onto CarPlay.

Streaming Fallout while you wait for your kid’s swim class to end might just have to wait a little longer.