The current Tesla Model S has a beautiful 17-inch LCD screen in the dashboard for displaying various vehicle functions. It is the largest screen in a vehicle by far. The software inside is built on Linux - Qt which means it is possible to develop pure Android apps for it (Android is just a modified version of Linux).
Back in October of this year at in event in Munich, when asked whether apps for a Tesla would be implemented at some point, CEO Elon Musk suggested that they were looking at developing an Android Emulator that would allow users to run Android apps in a window on the screen. He also said this could only be done after the basic browser inside the car's entertainment system was upgraded to Google Chrome.
Such changes won't be seen anytime soon. It would take at least the end of 2014 to upgrade the systems to run Android apps.
Having an Android car entertainment system would be direct competition for "iOS in the Car". This can only be viewed as healthy competition. Other car manufacturers may already be looking at developing Android systems as a standard feature in their vehicles.
The connected car landscape looks interesting for the near future.
You can watch the full video of the event in Munich below. Skip to 37:00 to hear Musk talk about apps.
Video source: Horst Luning (YouTube)
Image source: Tesla Motors
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