Soon after the first iPhone was launched in 2007, Apple‘s then CEO Steve Jobs (Steve Jobs) began to consider Apple’s new direction, including car building. Since then, Apple has embarked on a long and full of twists and turns of exploration. For most of the past ten years, Apple has been trying to develop electric vehicles, autonomous driving, and in-vehicle systems.
Recently there have been reports that Apple’s electric self-driving cars are expected to be mass-produced in 2024, which once again changed the prospects of its automotive projects and prompted Apple’s stock price to rise.
The Apple car project had more than 1,000 employees and rented many office spaces named after Greek myths. The company once owned more than 70 modified cars to test autonomous driving systems, acquired the autonomous driving car startup Drive.AI, and negotiated car production with Canadian OEM automaker Magna.
But judging from the fact that little is known about the Apple car project, the company’s efforts have not been smooth sailing. It is reported that the project leadership team has undergone several changes. Former Ford CEO Steve Zadesky left Apple in 2019, and another 190 employees applied to leave.
Compared with other competitors, Apple’s auto-driving range is very short, and there are only 23 test vehicles left, and more often require human drivers to take over. In addition, Apple cars continue to be involved in accidents on California highways, including rear-end collisions of stationary vehicles.
It can be seen from this evidence that Apple has long been interested in developing cars and autonomous driving systems, but how likely is it to build cars?
Most analysts still lack confidence in the so-called iCar. Richard Windsor, an independent technical analyst at Radio Free Mobile, said that the claim that Apple is about to produce consumer cars is “doubtful.” “Maybe they never planned to launch a car for sale, but only made prototypes. , And explore whether to enter the car industry.”
Windsor believes that the key obstacle to Apple’s driverless ambitions maybe profit. After all, like making cars simply will not produce their smartphones as high-profit margins, the company has persuaded thousands of people to pay a premium for their devices, or to attract them to the software ecosystem. Apple’s $2 trillion market value is supported by profitability, and mass production of self-driving cars will jeopardize its success.
Well-known Apple analyst Ming Guo said that the market is “too optimistic” about the prospects of Apple cars, adding: “We believe that it is very dangerous to conclude that Apple cars can succeed now.”
Tesla CEO Elon Musk also poured cold water on the idea that Apple may soon produce cars. He believes that Apple’s so-called “breakthrough battery technology” is chemically difficult to achieve.
