Wesley Hilliard
A hacker has found a new music source labeled "Apple" in Tesla software, indicating that Apple Music could be coming to the platform in a future update.
Tesla announced that it was working on new media services for its software platform during its Battery Day announcements. It indicated that Tidal music was coming, but said nothing about Apple Music.
After sleuthing the Tesla 2020.48.26 software update, hacker @greentheonly found references to Tidal and other sources like Apple Music in the software. The discovered placeholder only says "Apple" next to a radio icon, but could indicate official support is coming soon.
they's been working on it for quite some time
— green (@greentheonly) December 27, 2020
it's a bit of a stub now so who knows when it actually comes, the tidal is the next one I think because it actually started to get things populated. pic.twitter.com/du3TG1QYRX
Tesla North reports that Tidal will likely come first, as it has been officially announced and the discovered files are much further along than those relating to Apple's service.
Apple and Tesla have been at odds over the years despite having similar fan bases and tech-first strategies. The addition of Apple Music would be the first Apple-related service to make it to Tesla vehicles. Elon Musk has recently said that he approached Apple for a buyout, but was refused.
Andrew Orr
Amber Neely
William Gallagher
Christine McKee
AppleInsider Staff
4 Comments
I have a Tesla Model Y - I love the car but the lack of CarPlay was almost a dealbreaker. Overall, Tesla's interface is quite good; better than many/most other carmakers, but the media options are definitely subpar. They have spotify for music, but you need a subscription which is pointless if you already subscribe to apple music. Tesla uses TuneIn for podcasts and I will go on record saying the TuneIn app is absolute crap.
The tesla maps app is quite good; I'd say close to on par to Apple Maps. The one drawback is it isn't integrated with the calendar and contacts the way Apple Maps is. Of course the tesla maps app will do things like calculate battery percentage, charging stops, etc, so there are pros & cons.
There's not a good reason Tesla couldn't add CarPlay. apple music would be a start but I'm still holding out for full car play support.
If one actually reads his tweets, they’ll find that Green absolutely does not suggest this is “imminent”.
I really doubt CarPlay will ever come to Tesla. Tesla, much like Apple, wants to maintain complete control over the User Experience. Now Apple Music could certainly be a source. Personally though, I’m not in a big hurry for it. The media options available today in both of my Teslas is just fine.
S*it software on an iPad-like interface.
Can't wait for Apple to blow us away.