Android Auto 18 rolling out now – here's what that means for your car
Will this usher in a new era of Android Auto?
Quick Summary
A new version of Android Auto has arrived, paving the way for the next big redesign of Google's in-car software.
While there are no new customer-facing features in the new beta, the real changes could happen behind the scenes.
Android Auto 18.0 has officially started its beta rollout, so those who have opted into the beta will find that it's ready to update now.
The only changes that the app lists are "bug fixes", which is a familiar line for Android Auto. The updates are typically slow to appear and are often enabled without a major app version change.
So the bad news is that Android Auto 18 doesn't appear to mean anything for your car. At first glance, it brings no changes. But there could be more to it than that.
Diving into the code, 9to5Google has found references to "cielo_launcher", which is thought to be the next Android Auto redesign. The Cielo name has been floating around for some time in Android Auto, but so far hasn't amounted to anything.
The reference to a launcher suggests that it's a change in design, as previously we had "coolwalk_launcher" – and Coolwalk is the codename for the current design that Android Auto uses.
So Android Auto 18 could be part of the build-up to the refresh that Google previewed in The Android Show prior to Google I/O, a new interface that's more accommodating of widgets and smart enough to fill more diverse screen types.
The promise is for edge-to-edge maps, more Material 3 Expressive elements, shortcuts and customisation as well as Immersive Navigation and much more Gemini Intelligence.
That's something that Android Sage detected in the code too, with a Gemini onboarding flow discovered that seems to be about guiding users towards discovering Workspace data, likely to offer more dynamic responses based on real user information.
While Gemini is great in the car – it runs at a conversational level, accessing data and does all the stuff you might want in the car – it still doesn't quite give you everything you might want in terms of personalisation, ie. it can be generic rather than bespoke.
There also seems to be the ability to pause work notifications, suggesting that Gemini might be able to give you a bit of peace when your work day finishes and you're driving home.
So, like many Android Auto updates, on a surface level version 18 appears to bring no changes. But under the skin, there's a lot of promise that at some point in the future we'll get the new version that Google promised earlier in 2026.
