Self- driving electric car could arrive by 2019
Ready for an Apple car? New report says tech giant is moving forward
Apple is speeding up work on a project that could lead to the California tech giant building its own electric car, according to a new report.
The maker of the iPhone and iPad is tripling the number of engineers on the project, code- named Titan, and has set a “ship date” of 2019, the Wall Street Journal said this week. The newspaper said that could be a target for engineers to sign off on the design and not necessarily when a car would be available for sale.
Apple declined to comment on the report, which cited unidentified sources.
While Apple has never officially confirmed that it is planning to build a car, there are strong indications it’s at least interested in automotive technology. In recent months, Apple has hired a number of engineers with backgrounds in automotive and battery design.
Apple representatives also met in May with officials at an automotive testing facility located east of San Francisco. Site officials later confirmed to The Associated Press that Apple requested information about using their facility. And in August, an Apple attorney met with officials at California’s Department of Motor Vehicles to discuss the state’s regulations for self- driving cars. A department spokesman confirmed that meeting to The Associated Press after it was first reported by the Guardian newspaper.
“DMV often meets with various companies regarding DMV operations. The Apple meeting was to review DMV’s autonomous- vehicle regulations,” Armando Botello, the agency’s deputy director, said in an email.
Several automakers and tech companies, including Google and Uber, are working on technology for autonomous and electricpowered vehicles. Google recently announced it had hired former Hyundai U. S. chief executive John Krafcik to run its self- driving car program.
Analysts say Apple has the financial resources and ambition to design and build a high- end vehicle, although some believe it’s more likely interested in developing software for use in cars made by other companies.
“We believe the auto industry represents a significant opportunity for Apple, but we also expect Apple to be deliberate, as always, in its product development and testing,” said Piper Jaffray analyst Gene Munster in a Sept. 1 report. Munster said he believes there’s a “50 to 60 per cent probability” of an Apple car becoming a reality.