[BIG QUESTION] Why Is Apple Suddenly Interested In Cars?
Apple Inc. is secretly working on the creation of an Car. But why?
By Sadho Ram — 15 Feb 2015, 01:45 PM — Updated almost 10 years ago
After transforming how we, the commoners, engaged with our PCs, MP3s, smartphones and tablets, it seems like Apple now wants to revolutionise how we use our cars!
While a week ago it might have seemed crazy to suggest Apple was working on building an electric car, a number of reports point towards Apple's interest on this topic in the past few days
The Financial Times was out first with a story that said Apple was hiring experts for a new car research lab, in a move that suggested "an electric car could be in the works," reported Quartz.
Then, later, The Wall Street Journal followed up with more details on project "Titan," which reportedly involves hundreds of people secretly working on an electric vehicle that "resembles a mini-van."
Reuters later followed it up with a report saying that "Titan" is a self-driving car—a software-focused system that will aim to win the autonomous vehicle wars. (This contradicts the Journal, which says "a self-driving car is not part of Apple’s current plan," reported Quartz.)
Based on reports of Apple offering considerable bonuses to poach Tesla employees, Sam Colt at Business Insider reported that Apple's plans are a threat to Tesla itself:
This person said Tesla employees were “jumping ship” to work at Apple.
“Apple’s latest project is too exciting to pass up,” the person said. “I think it will change the landscape and give Tesla a run for its money.”
Apple has about 50 employees who previously worked at Tesla, according to LinkedIn. Many of those hires were engineers who interned at Tesla. Most of the engineers Apple has hired from Tesla specialize in mechanics, manufacturing, and robotics.
We can think of a couple of possibilities here. Apple may indeed be building some kind of vehicle, although this seems way outside the company's core. Whether or not Apple is working on a car of its own, the company seems to compete with Tesla for top talent.
businessinsider.in
While Apple declined to comment to media queries about any of the reports, just how serious Apple is about cars is anyone's guess. Handily, one such guess comes from respected Piper Jaffray analyst Gene Munster (first spotted by Business Insider).
He says he doesn't think it happens for 5 years. So, why is news leaking on it today? “While it appears Apple is serious about at least experimenting in the car space,” he writes in a note published today “we believe it is unlikely that the company launches anything in the next five years.”
businessinsider.in
According to a report by Quartz:
For years, Apple has been rumored to be working on a television, with no tangible results (and Munster is one of the people convinced it will happen). Given that televisions are much closer to the device giant’s core business than automobiles, it would be odd indeed for the company to come up with a van before a TV.
qz.com
So why the sudden deluge of reports about cars?
In part, it’s down to the media echo chamber that surrounds the notoriously secretive company. And this is what motivates Munster’s (conspiracy) theory about the car rumors—he seems to think it is effectively a public relations stunt, designed to keep investors excited about Apple’s prospects. It will bolster the company’s gravity-defying share price, which recently pushed its market cap above a record $700 billion.
qz.com
"We believe that the potential for a car gives investors something, along with the Watch and TV, to look at as the next big thing," the respected Piper Jaffray analyst says, continuing:
"History seems to be circular for Apple as many wonder if Apple can break the $1 trillion dollar market cap barrier, which is similar to the speculation when shares were at their highs after the iPhone 5 launch… We believe that floating the potential of a car now could be to help investors dream about the type of projects yet to come from Apple."
businessinsider.in
While that's an interesting take and also in line with one of Apple's slogans: "Think different", according to The Wall Street Journal, the Apple car project was approved nearly a year ago by CEO Tim Cook. But still, why would Apple build a car?
One possible answer is a glib one: Just because everyone else in Silicon Valley cares about it.
For years, Google has been investing in self-driving cars. Tesla, which has poached plenty of employees from Apple in the past, is creating a widespread conversation around the technology of electric, battery-powered cars.
You wouldn't have been wrong to assume that CES 2015 was partially an auto show, thanks to myriad of companies showing off smart car systems, self-driving mechanisms, augmented reality displays and other connected car items.
Companies are starting to make big, long term bets on the "next big thing." And for many companies, the future of automotive is the new hotness. It wouldn't be a stretch to say that Apple might agree with Google, Tesla and others that the car is a worthy moonshot project.
Electric cars are appealing for other reasons, with the memory of massive spikes in fuel prices still fresh and with a growing global interest in climate change.
mashable.com
However, regardless of Apple's interest in cars, we don't think you will be seeing an Apple Car out in the market any time soon
If the Journal is correct, the Apple automotive project has been in the works for about a year and has less than 1,000 people on its team. This means that the project is in nascent stages — and that's assuming the goal is a car, not another embedded system for all cars.
We're not going to see an Apple car on the road in 2015. Or in 2016. Probably not even in 2017. This will not see the light of day for a very long time. Anyone putting off buying a new Volkswagen in lieu of the iCar should put those plans aside right now.
A car play would be a long term bet on, well, driving the future. It's not, as the Journal points out, an inexpensive industry to enter. Tesla spends $1.5 billion on R&D each year and still only manages to ship 35,000 cars. Apple has more than $100 billion in the bank.
As well capitalized as Apple is, however, money can't speed-up the research and development process, especially if self-driving cars are the goal.
mashable.com