When this year’s North American International Auto Show opens to the public in Detroit on Saturday, visitors will be confronted with a scene that suggests carmakers are as confident as they are currently successful. Most manufacturers’ stands boast at least one new model designed to capitalise on the US industry’s record sales levels. Yet a closer look reveals cross-currents in the swelling tide of confidence. While, in past years, carmakers enthusiastically promoted proprietary systems for connecting vehicles to the internet and to customers’ smartphones, most are now touting their use of Google’s Android Auto, Apple’s CarPlay or both. Similarly, the battery in the Chevrolet Bolt electric vehicle — the centrepiece of General Motors’ stand — was built under a joint venture with South Korea’s LG. This year’s new vehicles betray the growing interdependence between carmakers and technology companies — two industries often seen as bitter rivals in the race to introduce internet-connected cars, electric vehicles and self-driving technology.