Tesla’s Model S and Model X come with a massive 17-inch touch screen center console allowing owners to control almost all functions, and this is the reason a lot of buttons are not found inside a Tesla car. Such a setup appears to be ideal for running all kinds of apps, and therefore, instead of creating a whole new app ecosystem, the EV firm may allow users to mirror apps from their existing devices to the center console.
Security the main concern
At a special event in Hong Kong specifically for Tesla owners, CEO Elon Musk touched upon this subject. He said there is a high possibility that they will move away from SDK in favor of allowing owners to mirror apps from their existing devices to the center console, says a report from 9to5 Google.
Currently, there are a few apps available for Tesla’s electric cars, and most of them happen to be browser-based. Developers might be hoping for a native SDK, but it would be a lot more sensible for Tesla to allow apps on iOS and Android — the two most widely -used mobile platforms — to be mirrored on the center console so that things are made easier for everybody.
Tesla is making such a move primarily because it is very careful about the security of its cars. SDK and app development come with the fears of making remote access possible. A Model S has been hacked in the past, but it needed a physical presence within the car.
Tesla CEO sees this as more logical
Musk said the company gave a lot of thought to apps and then arrived at this idea. Allowing apps on a driver’s iPhone or Android device to project onto the center console appears a lot more logical than trying to create an app ecosystem that is entirely new.
“So that is probably going to be our focus in the future to enable you to project apps from your phone to the center screen,” Musk said.
Working on app mirroring and projecting apps is very similar to that of Apple’s CarPlay and the Android Auto integration. Both systems project data from the owner’s phone to the car console. Along with Tesla, such an option appears to be a safer bet for most automobile manufacturers.
