Apple is reportedly shelving its own plan for an electric car in favor of developing self-driving software instead. It recently hired Dan Dodge who worked once worked with Blackberry.
An Apple spokesperson could not confirm if the company will eventually restart the electric car project on its own or with a partner. But it is now clear that Apple is now focusing on software when it recruited Dodge to its latest project, according to Bloomberg.
Dodge founded and once headed QNX, a company that develops operating systems. It was eventually sold to Blackberry six year. Dodge worked with them until late last year. Incidentally, Apple has set up an R&D facility in Ottawa, Canada. The new place is a short distance away from the QNX head office.
Project Titan was Apple's electric car plan, according to The Verge. The company plans to launch a working model four years from now. Unfortunately, the project has been bogged down by a series of delays in terms of personnel and technical problems. The Titan project is currently headed by Bob Mansfield. His division is divided into three teams namely, software, hardware and sensors.
The shift to developing self-driving software possibly indicates that the electric car project is going nowhere. Lackluster sales of Apple products particularly, the iPhones may have convinced company executives to focus on projects that could bring in revenue.
The R&D cost of Apple blew up by more than $2.5 billion in the second quarter of 2016 compared to the same period last year. Company CEO Tim Cook said that said that the research and development cost are investments for future products.
Reports indicate that Apple may not be entirely dropping the electric car project. The iPhone maker is still recruiting auto manufacturing engineers from the auto industry. There are speculations that Apple is planning to combine the electric car with the self-driving software.
