Though Apple has never disclosed the details of its self-driving auto project publicly, people familiar with the matter have said in the past that the company employed hundreds of people including software and automotive experts, as well as autonomous-driving technology engineers, for the project.
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Tesla Motors can take a breath of relief as Apple Car project undergoes a major overhaul, resulting in the closure of several initiatives and layoffs.
Apple might be rethinking “Project Titan”.
Apple is not the only big tech company pursuing autonomous driving technology. Separately, Uber is also planning to start picking up passengers in self-driving cars soon.
Is scaling back on what seemed to be its original plan a smart move for Apple, or is it an admission that the company just doesn’t want to throw more good money after bad in pursuit of a dream shared by dozens of other players? Although never admitting to working on this new technology, Apple’s leading manager, Timothy D. Cook mentioned at the beginning of the year that the automotive business is suffering dramatic changes. “Alphabet, the parent company of Google, has tested self-driving cars on the road for years”.
Whatever the outcome, Apple won’t have to explain to the public or Apple shareholders that it changed its mind.
‘Well, it’s going to be Christmas Eve for a while’. An Apple spokesman declined to comment.
With the focus now on developing the autonomous navigations software instead of the actual vehicle, Apple might settle for a smaller scope with its automobile venture. It has been widely rumored that Apple owns a fleet of unmarked vehicles decked with camera and sensor equipment.
A render of what the Apple Concept Car could look like.
The Apple Car project, codenamed Project Titan, has swallowed a significant amount of the company’s resources in the past few years for very little return, the report says. He replaced Steven Zadesky, who was initially the project head, but left due to personal reasons.
Elon Musk, chief executive of Tesla, has said that Apple has hired hundreds of engineers, including some from Tesla, to work on an automotive project.
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He had all but retired from Apple except for the occasional visit to the company’s headquarters in Cupertino, California. Before Apple, the parental company of Google also has tried to invent self-driving cars for a longer time. It cited people briefed on the plan, who said the vehicles are already “in the middle of testing in a closed environment”.
