Flutter already powers apps on mobile, web, and desktop. But what if your app could also live inside a car dashboard? That’s exactly what Android Auto lets you do—and the best part is, you don’t need to rewrite your Flutter app from scratch. With the right setup, you can extend your existing app and make it Android Auto–ready.

In this session, I’ll walk you through how Android Auto apps work under the hood and how Flutter fits in. We’ll cover the Android for Cars App Library, explore system-provided templates like ListTemplate, NavigationTemplate, and MediaTemplate, and see how to integrate them with Flutter using platform channels. I’ll also share how you can configure your AndroidManifest with the right CarAppService and permissions to make your app discoverable in the car environment.

You’ll get to see step-by-step how to connect Flutter’s UI logic with Auto’s safety-focused templates—so your app feels native to the dashboard while still reusing your existing business logic. We’ll also discuss Google’s strict design rules for in-car apps and how to build within those guardrails.

By the end, you’ll have a clear picture of how to bring your Flutter app “from phone to dashboard” and open it up to a completely new audience of users on the go.

Key Takeaways

- Learn how the Android Auto framework and Car App Library work.
- Understand which app categories (media, navigation, messaging) are allowed and how to fit Flutter into them.
- Step-by-step integration of CarAppService, templates, and platform channels in a Flutter project.
- How to handle focus, input, and restrictions unique to in-car environments.
- Best practices to design safe and driver-friendly UIs without compromising user experience.