Tesla could soon let iPhone users lock and start cars directly from Apple Wallet

If you own a Tesla, you already know how cool it is to use your phone or Apple Watch as your car key. You walk up to the car, it unlocks, you get in, you drive off. No physical key, no digging in bags. But Tesla might soon make this experience even smoother for iPhone users.

A report from Not A Tesla App claims that Tesla is working on something new called expanded phone key support, and the clues were found in the hidden code of the latest Tesla app update. The interesting part? The early version of this feature seems to be built for China first, especially for users on Huawei’s HarmonyOS system. Tesla often tests and launches features in China before releasing them to the rest of the world, so this didn’t surprise tech watchers. What did surprise them is the possibility that Apple Wallet support for Tesla phone keys could be next.

Right now, Tesla already lets you use your iPhone and Apple Watch as a key through its own Tesla app. But if Tesla adds support for Apple’s official car key feature inside the Apple Wallet app, things could get even more interesting. Imagine not needing to open the Tesla app at all. You could just use Apple Wallet to lock the car, unlock it, start it, and even stop it. And the best part is that some of these features could work without the Tesla app running in the background. That means fewer steps, fewer delays, and less battery drain.

The new system could use tech like UWB (Ultra Wideband), NFC, and UWB-powered tap-to-unlock, which basically lets your phone talk to your car more precisely and quickly. If your Tesla key moves to Apple Wallet, you could also share your car key just like you share photos or contacts, through Messages, Mail, or even AirDrop. This makes handing over access to a trusted person ridiculously easy. No need for complicated pairing or third-party apps. Apple Wallet even allows you to share keys via AirDrop, iMessage, or email.