GoKawiilAt the Android Show: I/O Edition last week, Google promised 2026 would be a big year for Android Auto, with major updates planned for how the platform looks and works across all the cars and devices where it's available. At I/O 2026, Engadget got a chance to see some of those upgrades running off both Android Auto on a phone and a Volvo EX60 with Google built-in.
Right off the top, most of the enhancements Google announced earlier this month will be available to people whether they access them directly through their car or via a phone. I did notice some visual differences between how those features are presented. With Android Auto, you get Google's own Material 3 Expressive across the board; with Google built-in, it's still Material 3 Expressive, but tweaked to accommodate the automaker's own stylings and the car's specific hardware.
The trade-off there is Google built-in offers Gemini integration that's only possible when manufacturers directly include the assistant in their cars, allowing you to use your voice to tweak model-specific settings. In the case of the EX60, that meant the Google employee talking me through the demo was able to tell Gemini to "darken" the car's sun roof, and it went from transparent to opaque. The employee was also able to ask Gemini to describe footage from one of the car's front-facing cameras. When the assistant saw the Transamerica Pyramid in the distance, it told us it was once the tallest building in San Francisco for 48 years running. It diplomatically did not mention that title was taken by the grotesque Salesforce Tower.