In 2020, Apple introduced a digital car key feature that allows users to unlock and start a vehicle by holding an iPhone or Apple Watch near the driver’s side door. Currently, only automakers BMW, Kia and Genesis offer compatible vehicles, but other manufacturers are expected to support this feature soon. As a reminder, Car keys are stored in the Wallet app, similar to a credit card on iOS.
Google is also rolling out the Digital Car Key feature on select Android 12 phones, allowing owners to automatically unlock and start affected vehicles by keeping their phone in their pocket. Keys have not been shared so far, but Google has changed that.
Sharing your car keys on Android is now possible
Google announced that starting today, users who have digital car keys for their vehicles will be able to share them with others. The first compatible smartphones are Google Pixel 6 and 7., but the manufacturer is working on making other devices running Android 12 and more compatible. Owners can: manage multiple Digital Car Keys and assign users who have access to the car, view and edit in their device’s digital wallet app.
Google also notes that now possible to share your keys from a Google Pixel to a compatible iPhone. As a reminder, Apple has already made it possible to share digital keys between iPhones since the iOS 16.1 update. If you have an iPhone, we remind you of the procedure to share your keys from Apple Wallet:
- Open the Wallet app on iPhone and select a car key
- Tap the share button and choose a sharing option
- Name the shared key, set permissions, and determine if an activation code is required for added security
- Messages, Mail, WhatsApp etc. Send via.
- Tap Continue, authenticate with Face ID, and follow the onscreen instructions.
- If you have chosen to request an activation code, or if your key requires a vehicle code, the code will appear after you share the key. Your receiver needs this one-time code to add the key to their device.
