General Motors announced a fresh infotainment experience that will debut on its 2027 light-duty pickups. The new software blends Apple CarPlay and Google Android Auto into a picture-in-picture (PiP) layout, allowing drivers to view navigation or media apps alongside critical vehicle data such as fuel level, tire pressure, and Super Cruise status.
The redesigned interface will first appear in the Chevrolet Silverado and GMC Sierra slated for launch later this year. Both trucks will sport a combined digital display that stretches roughly 60 inches, with a secondary passenger-side screen capable of showing video content. According to GM’s executive director of connected apps and services, Michael Wahlstrom, the goal is to give users a “single experience rather than moving from room to room inside a house.”
Why the change matters only for gasoline trucks
Although the announcement was framed as a “single scalable foundation that can extend across electric, gas and diesel-powered vehicles,” the company has been crystal clear that the new PiP UI is limited to its gasoline-powered light-duty pickups. In an interview, a GM spokesperson said, “We don’t have any news about EVs. The team’s focus is on the 2027 light-duty pickups given their importance to the business.”
This clarification aligns with a recent tweet from tech journalist Joanna Stern, who noted that GM is **not** rolling phone projection to its electric models. The statement means that the familiar CarPlay and Android Auto mirroring that many owners rely on will remain unavailable in the brand’s Ultium-based EV lineup, which includes the Chevrolet Equinox EV, Blazer EV, Cadillac Lyriq, and the upcoming Silverado EV.
Background: the EV phone-projection controversy
Since 2024, every new GM electric vehicle has omitted full-featured smartphone mirroring, a decision that sparked a wave of criticism. The only notable exception was the Cadillac Lyriq, which retained CarPlay support. GM’s rationale, first voiced by CEO Mary Barra in an appearance on the show Decoder, was that the company wanted to shift control of navigation and charging to its own software platform.
Barra later hinted that the same restriction could eventually reach gasoline models as well, a projection that alarmed many truck and SUV owners. Within days, GM walked back that claim, assuring the press that CarPlay and Android Auto would stay on “gas-powered vehicles for the foreseeable future.” The latest PiP rollout for the Silverado and Sierra appears to be the practical implementation of that promise.
Industry reaction and internal perspective
Colin McCormick, GM’s group product manager for Google-built-in projection, explained that the company wants to avoid forcing customers to choose between a native system and phone mirroring. He said, “We don’t have a customer that has to decide, ‘Oh, I’m going to use projection,’ or, ‘Oh, I want to use the native system.’ That’s our sweet spot.”
Meanwhile, aftermarket firms have already begun selling hardware kits that retrofit CarPlay into GM EVs, underscoring the pent-up demand. The new picture-in-picture design could be seen as GM’s attempt to reconcile its own software ambitions with consumer expectations, at least for its gasoline trucks. Whether this approach will eventually migrate to electric models remains an open question, as the company has not announced any timeline for extending the PiP UI beyond the 2027 Silverado and Sierra.
In short, GM is moving forward with a visually appealing, integrated infotainment solution for its most important trucks, while keeping the status quo for its electric lineup. The decision has drawn both praise for listening to customers and criticism for maintaining a split in user experience across the brand’s portfolio.
