Why MINI is Rejecting CarPlay Ultra (and What They’re Doing Instead)

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Apple has officially taken the wraps off the highly anticipated CarPlay Ultra, debuting it in the 2026 Aston Martin Vanquish S—with more automakers expected to follow suit. But what about MINI and BMW? After speaking with designers and engineers from both brands, we got a resounding answer: they’ve already passed on it. So what exactly is CarPlay Ultra, and why would MINI want nothing to do with it? And what does this mean for the standard CarPlay we know?

CarPlay Ultra represents Apple’s most ambitious foray into automotive integration, extending the iPhone’s interface beyond the central infotainment screen to encompass the instrument cluster and other vehicle controls. This allows for a seamless blend of Apple’s ecosystem with the car’s native systems, offering features like customizable displays, Siri integration for climate and audio controls, and real-time vehicle data visualization.

Note the vehicle integration on the last photo

However, BMW and MINI have charted a different course. While both brands continue to support standard Apple CarPlay, they have refrained from embracing the deeper integration offered by CarPlay Ultra. This decision aligns with BMW’s recent unveiling of its iDrive X system and MINI OS9, both of which emphasize a proprietary user experience. iDrive X features a panoramic display that spans the dashboard, offering drivers the ability to customize widgets, ambient lighting, and driving modes to their preferences – something far more advanced than CarPlay Ultra can seemingly handle. And MINI OS9 is incredible unique with its circular layout and lack of cluster display.

MINI and BMW Continue to Embrace Standard CarPlay

This doesn’t mean MINI and BMW will end their CarPlay integration. We heard directly the team responsible for bot MINI OS9 and the new iDrive X that the plan will be to continue offering CarPlay as we know it today. But integrating Ultra into the car’s cluster display and the telematics of the system itself is off the table.

This approach suggests a desire to maintain control over the core user interface and vehicle functionalities, rather than ceding these aspects to external tech ecosystems. The thought is that this strategy allows both brands to ensure a consistent brand experience across their vehicles, even as they accommodate popular features like CarPlay.

Apple calls out the flexibility of CarPlay Ultra but MINI and BMW seem unconvinced.

For MINI enthusiasts, this means continued access to Apple CarPlay’s familiar interface for navigation and media, without the full dashboard integration that CarPlay Ultra offers. While some may view this as a limitation, BMW and MINI look at their systems as already ahead of CarPlay in terms of vehicle functionality due to it’s deep integration of the car’s control units.

As the automotive industry navigates the intersection of technology and tradition, BMW and MINI’s stance on CarPlay Ultra highlights the ongoing debate over how much control automakers should retain over the in-car experience. For now, they appear content to offer the best of both worlds: embracing essential smartphone integration while preserving their own design and functional philosophies.

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