At a recent industry conference, Ford CFO Sherry House reaffirmed the company's full support for Apple CarPlay, stating it's a customer favorite and "choice is central to the modern user experience."

Ford's Strategy: Open Ecosystem

• Keep CarPlay: Continue supporting the popular platform.

• Add AI Assistants: Plan to integrate advanced features like Google Gemini by 2026.
  

• Develop Own Apps: Build proprietary services to deepen customer ties.
  

While GM and others drop CarPlay, Ford's stance is a clear "user-first" exception.

The Bigger Shift: Tesla Testing CarPlay?

According to Bloomberg, Tesla is internally testing CarPlay support. If true, this would be a major reversal from one of CarPlay's biggest former opponents.

The Bottom Line

Ford's commitment shows that in the smart car race, respecting user choice may beat a closed ecosystem. With key allies like Ford and a