Apple CEO Tim Cook gave some hints in an interview released on Monday about the direction of Apple’s long-awaited car, including that autonomous vehicle technology is likely to be a key feature.
“Autonomy itself is a core technology, in my opinion,” Cook told Kara Swisher in an interview on the “Sway” podcast. “If you kind of take a step back, the car, in many ways, is a robot. An autonomous car is a robot. And there are many things that you can do independently. And we’ll see what Apple does. “
Cook was careful not to reveal too much, refusing to answer Swisher’s question whether Apple is planning to produce a car or the technology inside the car. The clues he left suggest that Project Titan is working on something in between.
“We love to integrate hardware, software and services and find the points of intersection for them because we think that’s where the magic occurs,” said Cook. “And we love having the primary technology behind it.”
To which Swisher replied, “I’m going to take the car for this, if you don’t mind. I’m just going to jump into the car. “
We are too.
Many people in the micromobility industry like to say that e-scooters are basically iPhones on wheels, but Apple’s car is more likely in reality be the iPhone on wheels. Apple is generally known for having all its hardware and software, so it wouldn’t be surprising to see Apple engineers working closely with a manufacturer to produce an Apple car, with the potential to one day cut the middleman and become the manufacturer .
The so-called Titan Project appeared to be at risk of failing before a car was seen by the public with massive layoffs in 2019. However, more recent reports suggest that the project is alive and well, with plans to make an autonomous passenger electric vehicle in 2024.
Earlier this year, CNBC reported that Apple was close to finalizing an agreement with Hyundai-Kia to build an autonomous Apple-branded car at the Kia assembly plant in West Point, Georgia. Sources familiar with Apple’s interest in Hyundai say the company wants to work with an automaker that lets Apple hold the reins of the software and hardware that will go into the car.
The two companies never reached an agreement and negotiations were halted in February, according to several reports. This did not stop the flow of rumors and reports about Apple and its plans, which have already been linked to other suppliers, automakers like Nissan and even startups.
It is not yet clear what the Apple car will look like, but as a passenger vehicle, instead of a robot taxi or delivery vehicle, it will be facing competitors like Tesla.
“I never spoke to Elon, although I have great admiration and respect for the company he built,” said Cook. “I think Tesla did an incredible job not only establishing the leadership, but maintaining the leadership for a long time in the EV space. Therefore, I have a great appreciation for them. “
The Titan Project is being led by Doug Field, who was Tesla’s senior vice president of engineering and one of the main people responsible for the launch of the Model 3.