There have been rumors of Apple working on an electric car, calling it "Project Titan," and those speculations include the vehicle being able to operate by itself. However, reports say that the car may not be fully self-driving after all. It will only be autonomous on highways, granted that the weather is favorable.
Project Titan
Initially, the tech giant plans to launch a car that is fully self-driving in 2025. However, the plans changed, and it may not be fully automated anymore. Not only that but the launch will be delayed for a year past the initial launch date estimate. There will still be some form of autonomy, but it won't be as advanced as the company first claimed.
Mainly, the vehicle can only self-drive when it's on a highway. Drivers will have to steer the wheel once they're in a city with heavy traffic or if the weather is unpleasant. Apple may launch the vehicle in North America first, according to Engadget, and will spread out to other areas over time. It might be a while, however, since Apple has experienced some setbacks.
There have been strategy shifts as well as layoffs and management changes as of late, steering Apple away from focusing on the EV's progress. Even with a well-oiled company, it's still hard to achieve a fully autonomous car. Road systems are not yet primed for such tech, and there are still some legal red tapes to go through.
Apple Entering the Vehicle Industry
Reports say that John Giannandrea, Apple's AI and Machine Learning Chief, is actually heading Project Titan. He is working alongside Kevin Lynch, who worked on the Apple watch. The car will feature a chip that Apple designed, which will be manufactured by TSMC.
So far, Apple does not have the equipment needed to manufacture vehicles, which may mean that they will find partnerships in the industry. Although it's not yet officially confirmed, the tech company has been discussing the idea with other car companies like Hyundai, as mentioned by MacRumors.
Apple aims to arrange the seats looking inward, so passengers will face and engage with each other. They also plan on making a trunk compartment that will raise itself when the need arises and lowers down once it is no longer needed. Like Teslas, the Apple car will also have an iPad-like screen for the infotainment system.
The tech company may add backup systems in case of system failures, which may contradict Apple's initial idea of creating an EV with no steering wheel. It's likely that the car would be charged using the Combined Charging System since many car companies already use this, making the charger and charging stations more available.
Apple also aims to create a new battery altogether, wherein the vehicle could go farther, and the batteries would be cheaper. The company is said to be recruiting more employees to work on the project, and that includes experts in battery technology and autonomous systems. The tech giant started with 200 employees and aims to hire more.
