FRANKFURT (Reuters) – Germany’s Volkswagen is not concerned about Apple’s plans for a passenger car that could include the iPhone maker’s battery technology, said its chief executive Herbert Diess.
Reuters reported in December that Apple may have made enough progress to build a mass-market vehicle by 2024, helped by cost cuts in battery technology.
“The auto industry is not a typical technology sector that you could take over with a single stroke,” Diess was quoted in an interview with Frankfurter Allgemeine Sonntagszeitung.
“Apple will not manage this overnight,” he added.
Although Apple’s plans are not public, Diess said his intentions are “logical” because the company has experience in batteries, software and design, and that it has big pockets to develop those skills.
“Still, we are not afraid,” he said.
Volkswagen plans to develop the software needed for self-driving cars internally to ensure it can compete with technology companies in the field of electric car data.
Reporting by Vera Eckert; Alexander Smith edition