Android Auto Adds Spotify Jam, Video Apps & Web Browsers in Major Update

Google’s Gemini assistant isn’t the only addition to Android Auto following the Google I/O developer conference. A number of upcoming updates to the infotainment operating system, including as a light mode, web browsers, and video apps, have also been revealed or otherwise shown by the business.

Spotify will be our first choice. In a video released last week, Google announced that it is redesigning the Spotify app for Android Auto utilizing new media app templates that it is sending to developers. The music service is integrating Spotify Jam, which enables users to share control of an audio source from several devices, into Android Auto.

In Android Auto-enabled automobiles, Spotify users can start adding new songs to the playlist by tapping a new “Jam” icon on the touchscreen and then scanning a QR code. Unlike the equivalent SharePlay option in Apple Music, which needs everyone to have an Apple device in order to join, Spotify’s feature is far more accessible. “In the coming months,” according to the firm, Spotify Jam will be accessible.

The video also reports that Google will soon enable Quick Share for automobiles with Google built in, enabling users to add stops to Google Maps routes that are currently in process. Additionally, the business says it will add passkey functionality to its infotainment operating system.

We also have a new look at a light mode theme that the business is working on for Android Auto, which was created using a Google Figma kit for developing Android Auto app user interfaces. In its blog post on all the changes coming to Android Auto, Google didn’t specifically mention launching a light mode, but as 9to5Google points out, the user design option has been in the works for years.

Google did, in passing, hint that video and browser apps would be available for Android Auto. Video apps and other app categories will be made accessible for Android Auto “soon,” according to the company, while gaming apps are now in beta testing. Naturally, Google states that these functions are only available when a car is in park. For cars with Google built in, the browser feature is already in beta, and the infotainment system with video apps is also readily available. Furthermore, the business declared that weather app support is now officially out of beta.