There was a time when your car was just for driving. Over the years, many things have changed. However, until now, there wasn’t full support for WhatsApp on CarPlay. Now, WhatsApp has officially landed on Apple CarPlay, and it is definitely a big deal for many CarPlay users.
After quietly hanging out in beta for a while (and being spotted by the ever-watchful folks at WABetaInfo), the standalone WhatsApp app for CarPlay is finally here. It arrives as part of the WhatsApp for iOS version 26.13.74 update. The feature is already rolling out across India and other global markets, bringing WhatsApp directly to your car’s infotainment system, as long as your iPhone is plugged in and ready to go.
The CarPlay version of WhatsApp isn’t just a stretched-out version of your phone screen. It’s been rethought for driving, which means fewer distractions. You can view recent chats and call history in neatly separated sections, make WhatsApp calls directly from your car’s dashboard, and reply to messages using voice dictation. That last one is key. Earlier, you had to rely on Siri to read and respond to messages, which worked but not always smoothly. Now, WhatsApp cuts out the extra step, making replies feel more immediate.
Before you get too excited, there’s a catch — and it’s a sensible one. You can’t open chat threads directly on the CarPlay screen while driving. If you want to actually read a conversation, you’ll need to stop and check your phone. It’s a deliberate move to reduce distractions, and honestly, it’s hard to argue with that logic.
If you ask me, this feels like a genuinely well-thought-out update. It knows exactly where to draw the line, keeping distractions in check while still making things conveniently accessible. You can fire off quick replies using voice dictation, take calls without fumbling for your phone, and stay in touch without your eyes leaving the road for too long. It does not try to do everything, and that is precisely why it works. Instead, it focuses on doing the essentials well, just enough to make your everyday drives feel a little more connected, without turning your dashboard into yet another distraction.
Some of the best shots in Grok Imagine’s AI-made Odyssey don’t contain actors. Ancient landscapes stretch into the distance. Close-ups of grimy hands suggest people who have touched something rougher than a keyboard. For a few seconds, the illusion holds.
https://twitter.com/imagine/status/2113712964419063911
YouTube videos could soon look better without eating quite so much data, right? Thankfully, the platform plans to introduce a new video format called AV2 on its web player in early 2027, promising more efficient streaming and potentially fewer playback hiccups on slower internet connections. The big headline is a roughly 30% improvement in compression efficiency over AV1, YouTube's existing video format. That doesn't guarantee every video will use 30% less data, but it could make streaming a little easier on both internet connections and data allowances.
What is AV2, and why should viewers care?
YouTube is changing how its Home page works, giving viewers more control over what shows up there and making some of the app’s most-used sections easier to reach. Custom Feeds are now replacing the existing topic chips for eligible users, while YouTube is also testing a redesigned top bar on mobile that moves Subscriptions closer to the Home feed.
YouTube first started experimenting with Custom Feeds earlier this year, letting you type out what you wanted to watch and turning that request into its own stream of recommendations. Now, the feature is starting to look less like a side experiment and more like something YouTube actually wants people to use as part of their everyday Home page.