GM unveils redesigned dashboard infotainment system General Motors is taking a step change in the way it delivers its automotive tech, with a new infotainment system for the 2027 Chevrolet Silverado 1500 and 2027 GMC Sierra 1500. Rather than have drivers choose between smartphone projection or GM’s native vehicle controls, the new system enables Apple Car Play and Android Auto to run alongside the truck’s native infotainment system. The new design is calibrated to how pickup owners actually use their vehicles, with trailer info, tire pressures, fuel data and driving-assist controls all staying on the screen, even when user-chosen smartphone apps are running.
The new system is set to debut on the combustion-powered 2027 Silverado 1500 and Sierra 1500, which Chevrolet said will arrive later in 2023. Chevrolet announced the refreshed Silverado 1500 on June 16, then revealed GMC’s Sierra just a few weeks later. GM’s new system places phone projection in its own card on the display while GM’s in-house truck software remains active in other portions of the screen. The idea here is to provide a dashboard that combines smartphone convenience with truck-centric data rather than forcing you to jump constantly between multiple menus and screens.
1. GM Brings Apple CarPlay and Android Auto Back Into the Spotlight
The redesigned infotainment approach from GM is focused on providing Apple Car Play and Android Auto within the digital display of GM’s 2027 full-size pickups. GM’s new approach provides Apple Car Play or Android Auto across a big card, with its own GM native truck infotainment that stays visible in the data display. Both systems operate simultaneously, with drivers able to access navigation, music, and other smartphone applications without sacrificing vehicle information. The screen’s home key is a press away to take the driver back to GM’s primary interface.
Smartphone Projection Features:
- Apple CarPlay remains supported
- Android Auto works alongside
- Native GM software stays visible
- Phone apps occupy dedicated cards
- Home button restores GM layout
The split screen is a direct response to the practical demand of pickup truck owners that would like to keep an eye on information that pertains to the vehicle regularly. While using a smartphone for navigation or audio playback, for example, the driver can still see gauges for fuel economy, trailering data, tire pressure, vehicle status, and Super Cruise. GM says it designed the new display so that it would be easy for drivers to seamlessly shift back and forth between the two modes and enjoy features specifically designed for their truck as well as their phone. GM collaborated with both Apple and Google on the new split-screen display. GM’s director of connected apps and services Michael Wahlstrom told GM Authority that, We listen to the customers and we know they want projection to be maintained in their trucks.
2. The Split-Screen Layout Keeps Important Truck Data Visible
The new Home Screen is one of the largest upgrades ever to how smartphone projection works in these pickups. Instead of making a plugged-in phone’s interface take over the entire display, the new screen splits the display between phone projection and GM’s own truck display software. That lets drivers access vital information while still having all their favorite smartphone apps in the same place: navigation maps, music playlists, vehicle info, fuel info, tire pressure info, trailing info.
Split-Screen Advantages:
- Keeps truck information visible
- Supports familiar navigation apps
- Maintains tire pressure access
- Displays trailering information
- Reduces repeated menu navigation
This architecture is designed to allow the driver to get to common features as quickly as possible for daily driving. Instead of leaving one environment to go to another, you get to see both simultaneously. This is especially helpful for pickup owners who rely on vehicle information for work jobs, towing, highway driving and their daily drives. The design also is meant to convey GM’s history working with tech powerhouses like Apple and Google rather than treat smartphone projection as an entirely separate experience, GM said. The company said it’s a way to give customers the best of both worlds their device and the truck’s software without a choice.
3. The 2027 Silverado and Sierra Get Larger Digital Displays
General Motors is launching this new software experience alongside new digital hardware for the restyled 2027 Chevrolet Silverado 1500 and GMC Sierra 1500. That means up to 60 inches of total screen area on three separate screens that run a common software platform. The display in the center of the dash spans 16.3 inches, giving it enough width for the split screen for that display, along with the different “cards” of information it shows. A 12.2-inch driver information display lives directly behind the wheel, in the driver’s line of sight.
Digital Display Hardware:
- Up to 60 inches combined
- 16.3-inch center touchscreen
- 12.2-inch driver display
- Optional 11.5-inch passenger screen
- Three-display cabin arrangement
An optional 11.5-inch display screen for the front passenger seat is an additional feature offered on higher trims and brings entertainment to the lounge area of the truck. The passenger screen will work with a range of different entertainment options, such as Amazon’s AMX, DIRECTV, Disney+, Hulu, Tubi and YouTube, with music available from Amazon, iHeartRadio, SiriusXM and TuneIn. The feature set up for the passenger seat also includes a reminder for the passenger to prevent the driver from viewing videos while driving.
4. GM Gives the Displays a New Visual Design
In addition to the functional changes, GM has refreshed the digital display visuals. New graphics, richer colors, increased visual depth, and high-contrast display panels are used to improve visual clarity on each of the three screens. Black levels are deeper, and display detail has been increased to help information stay visible and on point, whether the driver is peering at the display from the driver’s seat or glancing at it from the passenger’s side of the vehicle. The interface uses a white-on-black color scheme for increased black levels and to help lower cabin glare when driving at night.
Display Design Updates:
- Uses richer display colors
- Provides sharper visual depth
- Features deeper black backgrounds
- Improves text visibility
- Reduces nighttime cabin glare
The visual overhaul is another step GM is taking to help the digital cockpit feel more intuitive and easy to use. GM has also clarified the home screen, scaled up touch targets, and included customizable quick-access controls. Drivers can specify what apps and vehicle functions are most frequently accessed through the quick-access control window for quicker access than navigating from the home screen. “It’s not about cramming more apps in the dash, but making them easier to access for the everyday driving experience,” said GM.
5. GM’s CarPlay Strategy Changed After Customer Pushback
The revived phone projection on the completely redesigned gas trucks was a response to years of controversy over GM’s infotainment plans. GM announced in 2023 it would drop Apple Car Play and Android Auto from the electric vehicles it sells. That plan started with the 2024 Chevrolet Blazer EV that panned customers to GM’s Google Built-In instead. CEO Mary Barra said it was a matter of time before that same strategy would come to the internal combustion lineup, initially planning for the phone projection to go away in 2028.
GM Infotainment Strategy Shift:
- Phase-out announced in 2023
- Began with Blazer EV
- Google Built-In became central
- Gas trucks retained projection
- New pickups restore integration
The original plan was based on custom software that was closely integrated with vehicle controls, navigation, charging features and potential subscription services. But no phone projection, like Apple Car Play or Android Auto, faced wide criticism from owners and potential buyers who wanted to connect their mobile phones directly to the vehicle’s screen. Several third-party aftermarket companies began selling adapters that companies claimed could enable Car Play in GM EVs. GM gas trucks still had phone projection during that time. A GM spokesperson later referred to the new setup as a natural evolution, saying GM had already been among the first to offer Apple Car Play and Android Auto to the automaker’s gas-powered trucks.
6. Mode-Aware Displays Adapt to Different Driving Tasks
In addition to the projection of your smartphone, the new digital cockpit has additional functions that are specially developed for pickup truck use. You see the digital instrument cluster as a “mode-aware” display system, that adapts to the specific task you perform with the pickup. So, whether you’re towin’ or takin’ the truck off-road or cruising on the highway, the digital cockpit can adapt and display the information you need for that task at that time.
Mode-Aware Dashboard Functions:
- Adapts to driving conditions
- Highlights towing information
- Supports off-road driving
- Changes highway information
- Surfaces relevant vehicle metrics
The features of GM’s hands-free, eyes-on highway driving system Super Cruise get even more dashboard deepening. Drivers can engage Super Cruise or Adaptive Cruise Control with just one push of a button-on the steering-wheel. Once in the system, an updated version of the instrument cluster is used that also makes use of a real-time 3D driving visualization which includes the ability to display information such as other vehicles, lane markings, and objects as detected by the truck’s sensors while the driving assistance system is on.
7. Trailering Gets Its Own Dedicated Digital Experience
GM has made a particular effort to customize the all-new digital interface for full-size pickup customers and new trailering functionality is a good example of that effort. When a trailering connection is established and hands-free trailering is enabled, the instrument cluster can automatically transition to a dedicated trailering visualization and a trailering card appears on the central information display. Drivers have quick access to key trailering information without navigating through numerous screens.
Trailering Interface Features:
- Dedicated trailering visualization
- Main-screen trailering card
- Hands-free trailering support
- Automatic display adaptation
- Quick access to towing data
This approach actually takes the same basic idea as our wider mode-aware dashboard system. Rather than every driving situation requiring the same screen, the software can adapt what information is displayed based on the task at hand. For pickup owners, towing sometimes requires constant access to vehicle- and trailer-related data, so quick recognition can be particularly helpful. The trailing display complements the rest of the digital cockpit, rather than entirely replacing it so you have access to other key features along with the more conspicuous trailer info.
8. Calls and Controls Are Designed Around Everyday Driving
Also, GM improved certain elements of the user experience on a smaller scale so the new infotainment experience is less distracting during everyday driving. Incoming call and message alerts do not fill the entire center touchscreen or obscure critical navigation guidance. Now an incoming call will display a small call timer at the top of the screen, allowing the communication indication to be visible without overlapping navigation or trailing guidance.
Everyday Usability Improvements:
- Simplified home-screen layout
- Customizable quick-access controls
- Larger touch targets
- Smaller call notifications
- Physical controls remain available
The trucks keep physical knobs and buttons for its essential vehicle functions, providing drivers a tactile option to touchscreen controls and ensuring all functions aren’t only reliant on a digital display. The touchscreen interface will be complemented by the physical controls, which will be used for the most common vehicle functions. GM explained how the duo of large touch targets and the simplified home screen, ensures regularly used features are more easily selected, while the physical controls give another option for common vehicle functions.
9. GM Has Not Confirmed CarPlay for Its Electric Vehicles
Another key concern following this announcement is whether GM’s all-new smartphone projection feature will ever make it into GM’s electric vehicles. For now, Chevrolet Blazer EV, Chevrolet Equinox EV, Cadillac Lyriq and GMC Sierra EV all come equipped with GM’s native Google Built-In and do not support full phone-mirroring. While the EV community has been clamoring for support for phone projection, GM has not stated whether Apple Car Play and Android Auto will be available in EVs.
GM EV Projection Status:
- EV availability remains unconfirmed
- Current EVs use Google Built-In
- Blazer EV lacks full mirroring
- Sierra EV follows native software
- Broader rollout remains unclear
GM has said the digital interface is built on a “scalable foundation,” which will be able to power gas, diesel, and electric vehicles. But that doesn’t mean all the cars will have the same features. Sebastian Bauer, GM’s executive director of Human Interface Design, said customers should experience the same fundamental GM foundation from vehicle to vehicle, but it would not necessarily be identical. The company’s approach, he said, is that the foundation provides a platform on which each brand and vehicle “can really emit its own personality and character.” Asked about availability of phone projection for EVs, GM declined to offer an update.
10. The 2027 Silverado and Sierra Combine Native Software With Phone Projection
The refreshed 2027 Silverado 1500 and GMC Sierra 1500 radically alter GM’s software philosophy. Traditionally, the company has insisted that drivers choose between its software and smartphone technology. The new interface lets Apple Car Play and Android Auto use truck features at the same time. This setup leaves vehicle information in sight with access to common apps that people use on their phones, like maps, radio stations and contacts.
2027 Pickup Technology Highlights:
- CarPlay and Android Auto
- Up to 60-inch displays
- Super Cruise integration
- Dedicated trailering information
- Retained physical controls
The new system is set to debut later this year on the redesigned gas-powered pickups and will incorporate a two-part split-screen infotainment system with mode-specific instrument clusters, 3D Super Cruise visualizations, a dedicated trailering view, passenger media, simplified controls, and updated messaging alerts. GM’s overall software approach for this new system will still be based on the same core shared architecture that will be compatible with multiple vehicle types, but the automaker has yet to confirm if smartphone projection will return on other EVs in the lineup once launched. For now, the 2027 Silverado 1500 and Sierra 1500 are set to be the first to debut this new approach, with native GM truck software combining with smartphone projection in the digital cockpit.
