The adoption of digital locks and keys is still in its infancy, but a growing number of hotel chains and car brands are introducing support for hands-free unlocking via apps like Apple Wallet, from a smartwatch or other wearable.
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In addition to bringing passports to the Apple Wallet app on your iPhone for example, and increasing the number of supported automakers like Audi, Volvo, and Polestar, Apple is now exploring how to bring the convenience of the digital key to rental cars as well.
According to an interview with Wallet head Jennifer Bailey, Apple will partner with rental giants to not only allow you to reserve a vehicle, but also to authenticate and verify your identity and then issue you a digital car key for the rental car of your choice, so you don't have to go and pick up a physical key yourself.
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Judging by the speed of uptake for some other Apple Pay or Wallet businesses, this new future of renting your cars with an iPhone or Apple Watch is still a bit in the future, but now that more and more companies are turning to digital locking, adoption of this new technology may be faster than expected.
Apple's digital car key now supports a very limited number of brands, including BMW, Mercedes, cars from the Hyundai/KIA group, the world's second-largest electric vehicle company BYD, and some niche brands like Lotus or Rivian.
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This is a far cry from widespread use of Apple's digital key, as cars require NFC or UWB connectivity that not all models from brands that officially support Apple's digital vehicle unlocking can offer yet.
Source: phonearena
