Unsatisfied with its devices already living in our pockets, on our wrists, and on our desktops, Apple is seemingly at work on a completely different sort of mobile device: an electric car. Codenamed Project Titan, celebrated Apple analyst Gene Munster announced that Apple cars will be hitting the road within the next five years.
In keeping with the company’s grand tradition of secretive product development, there have only been speculations about what Apple’s take on transport mobility will be like. Here’s what we have gathered from various sources:
1,000 engineers are working on the Apple car
Since it was kicked off in 2014, Project Titan has involved the work of some 1,000 engineers, some of which formerly worked at Tesla. Interestingly enough, so many engineers have left Tesla to work for the iPhone manufacturer that Elon Musk has called Apple “the Tesla graveyard“. Apple also hired David Masiukiewicz, formerly Tesla’s senior CNC programmer for hardware prototypes, and Kevin Harvey, formerly Andretti Autosport’s CNC machine shop supervisor.
Strong evidence that the Apple car will be autonomous
An inside source working at Apple has claimed that the Apple car will “change the landscape and give Tesla a run for its money”. This hints strongly at the Apple Car becoming a direct competitor to Tesla’s Model S.
Potentially being developed in a secret lab in Berlin
German publication Frankfurter Allgemeine reported that Apple is running a secret laboratory in the middle of Berlin to develop the car.
Vienna provided that glimmer of hope for the Apple Car after multiple rejections
According to German news source Handelsblatt, German carmakers Daimler and BMW have ended talks with Apple after disagreements over leadership of the project and, above all, which company would have ownership of the data. Earlier this year, Frankfurter Allgemeine reported that Apple may be partnering up with the vehicle engineering and contracting firm Magna, which is based in Vienna, Austria.
Senior Vice President of Technologies Bob Mansfield is in charge
Appointed to lead the car project in July, Bob Mansfield is Apple’s head of hardware development. Prior to that, he was in charge of the company’s Macs and iPads.
Projected release of the Apple Car set for 2021
That target date was originally 2019, according to Wall Street Journal. However, due to the a series of setbacks, the target date has been delayed to 2021, according to The Information.
Source: Business Insider
