Car keys in Wallet expand

Your car key is turning into another app icon, and two big holdouts just crossed over. Toyota now supports Apple Wallet car keys on the 2026 RAV4, and Rivian has enabled the feature on second-generation R1S and R1T vehicles. (9to5mac.com) Apple’s version is simple: you add a key to Wallet, then use an iPhone or Apple Watch to lock, unlock, and start the car instead of pulling out a fob. Apple says the feature works on iPhone XS or later, iPhone SE second generation or later, Apple Watch Series 5 or later, and newer devices unlock extra hands-free features. (support.apple.com) There are three ways these keys work, and they feel different in practice. Some cars unlock when you walk up, some unlock when you touch the door handle, and some need you to hold the phone or watch near a reader like tapping into a subway gate. (support.apple.com) Apple also built in a dead-battery fallback, which is one of the reasons this has moved beyond gimmick status. Apple says car keys can keep working for up to five hours after an iPhone battery runs out. (apple.com) Toyota is the bigger surprise because it sells cars at a scale most early Wallet partners do not. According to 9to5Mac, Toyota’s first Apple Wallet car key arrived in February 2026 on the 2026 RAV4, which is one of the company’s highest-volume models. (9to5mac.com) Rivian matters for a different reason. Rivian’s support page says its Wallet-based digital key uses ultra-wideband, a short-range radio system that measures distance precisely enough to know whether your phone is actually near the truck, and it requires a model year 2025 or newer vehicle with recent software. (rivian.com) That precision is part of the security model Apple has been building since it introduced car keys in 2020. Apple’s security guide says pairing involves a one-time password, a Secure Element inside the device, and cryptographic key exchange so the phone is acting more like a bank card than a screenshot of a key. (support.apple.com) The slow part has never been Apple’s software. The slow part has been carmakers wiring this into vehicles, dealer systems, and ownership checks, because a lost house key is annoying but a bad digital car key can strand a $70,000 vehicle in a parking lot. (support.apple.com) Now the list looks ready to grow again. 9to5Mac reports that Porsche has announced support for the 2026 electric Macan and Cayenne, and General Motors brands including Cadillac, Chevrolet, and GMC appear to be next. (9to5mac.com) The pattern is getting clearer: Apple Wallet started with a few premium models in 2021, and six years later it is landing in a mass-market sport utility vehicle from Toyota and electric pickups from Rivian. That is usually how car tech goes from demo to default. (apple.com)