Ferrari, Volvo, and Mercedes to unveil first iOS in the Car-integrated vehicles next week
When announcing iOS 7 last year, Apple previewed an upcoming featured called iOS in the Car that will allow automotive manufacturers to integrate iOS-powered mobile devices into the media centers in their cars.
Context & Ripple Effects
Apple has been building toward this reveal for a year: it previewed iOS in the Car alongside iOS 7 with Maps and Siri aimed at the car console in April 2013, and by December a developer had activated the hidden system and exposed its interface. The expectation since then has been that iOS 7.1 would be the software release that switches the feature on, making next week's vehicle unveilings the hardware half of the launch.
Honda already made the first move with its 2014 Civic touchscreen integration last December, so Ferrari, Volvo, and Mercedes stepping up puts the feature in premium cabins rather than volume ones — a positioning choice, not just a timing one. The pickup across eight outlets including the Wall Street Journal shows this landing as an industry story, not an Apple rumor-cycle item.
First-order effects
- Ferrari, Volvo, and Mercedes become the first automakers shipping iOS in the Car, putting Siri and Apple Maps in their media centers ahead of every rival brand.
Second-order effects
- Other carmakers face immediate pressure to match — Honda's earlier Civic integration was framed as 'first steps,' and non-participating brands now cede iPhone-owning buyers' dashboards to the three launch partners.
Third-order effects
- If the pattern holds, control of the car console shifts from automotive suppliers' infotainment stacks to whichever mobile OS owns the driver's phone — Apple's stated goal of 'owning your car's console' becoming the default interface layer across the market.
The trend: The smartphone OS is moving from pocket to dashboard, with Apple using premium auto partners to make iOS the default in-car interface.