“Amidst reports of layoffs across Apple’s rumored car division, I fielded several calls from reporters who assumed the news meant Project Titan was dead and Apple had abandoned car-related efforts altogether,” Tim Bajarin writes for PC Magazine. “That’s absurd. If Cupertino was killing Project Titan, why would it bring back Bob Mansfield, former vice president of engineering, to manage the project? Instead, I imagine Mansfield returned, assessed Project Titan, and tightened its focus, which unfortunately led to layoffs.”
“In the beginning, Apple likely hired a lot of people from many disciplines as it was researching and playing around with what it should do in the automotive space,” Bajarin writes. “Knowing Apple as I do, I would not be surprised if it entertained everything from doing its own car to new ways to integrate its technology into existing vehicles.”
“My personal belief is that Project Titan is not about creating an Apple Car,” Bajarin writes. “It just does not make sense given the competition from traditional auto makers. Instead, the biggest opportunity I see for Apple is creating software that makes existing cars smart or autonomous.”
Read more in the full article here.
MacDailyNews Take: We think it’s about more than just software. Maybe not an entire vehicle, but there’s more than just software happening here.
I’ve always wanted to own and control the primary technology in everything we do. – Steve Jobs, October 12, 2004
[Apple’s] reason for being is the same as it’s always been — to make the world’s best products that really enrich people’s lives. That hasn’t changed. And we do that through owning the primary technologies. — Apple CEO Tim Cook, August 9, 2016
Clearly, Apple has to interface with auto hardware with whatever auto software they’re creating. As per the Apple core manifesto, the software must be married with the hardware to create the optimum final device.
I keep the above in mind as I machete through the jungle of rumors.
“Apple inc never comments on future products”, which is stated on just about every conference call. So in stating that, we should be aware of blind speculation made by clueless analysts.
Told you Project Titan was DEAD.
Yes and I told you that I am keeping your comment for future reference. As this whole article is about Project Titan being anything but dead, it’s simply it’s exact form that is the question I can only smile at your inability to listen. So let’s just say see ya later fella because I’m sure you will be back doing the Norwegian Blue act again.
I’m pretty sure they’re building an apple-juice-powered jet pack. It’s so obvious.
That would certainly explain why a shell company rumored to be an Apple subsidiary recently bought 6000 acres of orchards in the Pacific Northwest.
Wait, they brought back Bob Mansfield, that big fat ba*tard that only knows how to screw things up?
You should know, right?
I don’t know, I scre*ed your mama and she seemed pretty happy.
Hello dad!
I hope you didn’t inherit his IQ lol.
I think that Tim Bajarin has got it completely wrong. While I agree that Apple could do a great job of creating a brilliant software for cars, I see no sign whatsoever that major manufacturers are receptive to using bought-in software. Indeed, quite a few major manufacturers have made it quite clear that they would strongly resist adopting software created by the likes of Apple or Google and would prefer to write such software in-house.
There’s no way that I could see Apple investing a lot of money and effort in software for cars unless they are certain that the market is there and is sizeable. The only explanation that makes sense to me would be for Apple to create it’s own car and develop the software to control it.
Can Apple disrupt this market? That is the only chance they have.
Propulsion and software
A Titan is something very big.
Perhaps they are going to build a new type of cruise ship.
( now that it’s not gonna be a car)