SharePlay with HomePod

It looks like Home SharePlay isn’t completely dead after all. This new feature appeared in the first iOS 17.4 beta earlier this year before being quietly pulled. When it didn’t reappear in iOS 17.5, nobody was quite sure what was going on, but it turns out Apple was saving it for iOS 18.

Much like CarPlay SharePlay in iOS 17, this allows multiple users to share a play queue on a single HomePod, with each person contributing their own songs. It’s basically iTunes DJ for an Apple Music generation, letting everyone contribute from a library of a hundred million songs rather than what’s in a personal music library.

Apple hasn’t said much about it, but we’re assuming it will be the same as what we briefly saw in iOS 17.4, which means that the Apple TV will also be able to play along. That will be particularly great for parties since you’ll see what’s playing on the big screen and possibly even let people mix in their selections for an Apple Music Sing Karaoke night.