Apple is working on a new CarPlay function that would let users pay for gas right from the dashboard of their car. Apple CarPlay customers will no longer need to go through the typical credit card process at the pump; instead, they may buy petrol directly from their car by tapping on an app starting this fall.
“Fuel and driving” tasks will be available to CarPlay users with the coming iOS 16 update, Apple’s developer guide shows.
The feature was quietly unveiled at an Apple news conference last month, Reuters reported.
HF Sinclair, which markets its petrol at 1,600 stations in the US, told Reuters it plans to use the CarPlay feature and that it will announce more details in the coming months.
To use the feature, iPhone users will have to download a petrol company’s app to their handset and enter their payment details. Once that is done, they will be able to use their navigation screen to activate a fuel pump and pay.
Petrol company app developers can only display fuelling stations on maps when submitting a task app for approval, the developer’s guide said. The app must also provide “meaningful functionality relevant to driving”.
The feature adds to a growing list of apps the technology company is making available for users, including those that can be used for parking, ordering food and charging electric vehicles.
Apple is also adding driving task features to its CarPlay system that will allow users to log distances travelled during business trips.