Project Titan’s futuristic secrets
Apple’s secret car plans – now shelved – have been revealed
Project Titan, Apple’s supposed self-driving car scheme, has been the worst-kept secret in Silicon
Valley. Now, even more details have been leaked, thanks to a New York Times article.
The piece alleges that the original aim of Project Titan was to overhaul the idea of what a car should be. So the Apple Car would have spherical wheels like globes, allowing it to potentially move sideways as well as backwards and forwards, and a spherical steering wheel to give more precise control. There would also be motorised doors, plus virtual or augmented reality features for the interior displays. However, a series of disagreements led to the project stalling. There were arguments over what programming language to use for the car’s software, and whether the car should be fully or semi-autonomous.
These disagreements led to project leader Steve Zadesky taking a leave of absence, Apple executive Bob Mansfield taking over, and many employees being laid off. Under Mansfield’s watch, Apple has shifted focus onto autonomous software, and is allegedly testing this in a selfdriving bus for Apple employees – but it’s still interesting to think what might have been had Apple’s original ideas come to fruition.