There have been various speculations and rumors circulating about an ambitious project, known as Project Titan, helmed directly by Apple’s CEO, Tim Cook. This project was rumored to be centered around the development of a fully autonomous vehicle, which would not include any traditional elements such as a steering wheel or pedals. This would have been a testament to Apple’s innovative spirit and their desire to push boundaries within the technology and automobile sectors.
Despite a decade of speculation and considerable investment, Apple has now reportedly decided to halt its plans for the development of electric vehicles, which had been colloquially referred to as the Apple Car. Apple, a company known for its stringent confidentiality policies concerning unannounced projects, had never officially confirmed the existence of this project. It is estimated that this project engaged approximately two thousand individuals within the company. With the termination of the project, many of the staff who had been working on it are expected to be redirected to work within the company’s artificial intelligence department, according to Bloomberg News.
The sector of electric vehicles is currently facing a period of stagnation, a situation made worse by the high costs associated with financing such projects, making the market extremely competitive. Notably, dominant players within the U.S automobile industry like Ford and General Motors have recently deferred their plans to broaden their production of EVs. Similarly, Tesla, the company led by billionaire Elon Musk, has also projected a decline in sales growth for the current year.
In contrast, Apple is approaching the launch of iOS 18, which is purportedly the company’s first operating system to be designed around the incorporation of artificial intelligence within the iPhone. As consumer technology continues to evolve, the next few years will likely be dominated by advancements in AI. Therefore, it is not surprising that Apple plans to focus the majority of its resources towards this sector. Additionally, Apple has not abandoned its efforts to penetrate the mixed reality headset market and has recently launched Vision Pro in its bid to gain a foothold in this market.