Android Auto Could Get Cast Support and a Refreshed Music Player

Google continues to make its Android Auto smarter and more user-friendly. The company is now working on adding Google Cast support and a refreshed music player design using its latest Material 3 Expressive style. These features are currently hidden within the APK, so you can’t experience them the right way.

Google is testing Cast and Material 3 music player features in Android Auto

While digging through the Android Auto 15.9.655104 build, folks over at 9to5Google discovered new strings in the code pointing to Google Cast functionality. These strings show a bunch of related messages, such as “Cast. Connecting,” “Cast. Connected,” and “Stop casting.” This suggests that Google is gearing up to bring Cast to Android Auto. This should allow users to stream content, such as music and videos, from their phones or other devices directly to the car’s display.

Note that the ability to cast content to a car display is not new. Last year, Google brought this functionality to Android Automotive OS (a built-in operating system for car infotainment), starting with Rivian. Now you will be able to enjoy casting with Android Auto as well, making media streaming more seamless.

Apart from Cast support, Android Auto could also get a refreshed music player. Thanks to Android Authority, we got an early look at it in action. As you can see in the images below, the update introduces a wavy progress bar for music apps, aligning with Material 3 Expressive design language. The company has also redesigned control buttons in both the full music app and the control widget.

As of now, it’s unclear when Google will roll out these features to the Android Auto beta or stable channel. However, their presence within the APK suggests that the company is developing and testing them. We will let you know if the company makes them available in upcoming Android Auto updates.