Apple Officially Cancels Electric Car Project, Focuses On Other Technology

JAKARTA - The tech giant Apple has reportedly stopped a team working on its electric car, known as the Special Projects Group.

Apple's ambition to build cars first emerged in 2014, marked by recruiting automotive engineers and recruiting the best talents from various car manufacturers.

However, Apple's car development information is very closed. Apple and CEO Tim Cook also never officially recognized the car project, and always called it just an "autonomous system development". However, the company was once known to be operating a self-driving car equipped with sensors and safety drivers, traveling around the San Francisco Bay Area.

The termination of Apple's electric car project, as reported by Bloomberg, February 28, marks the end of Apple's covert efforts to build cars that can compete with Tesla.

It is known, this program has previously involved thousands of employees, but is considered not in accordance with Apple's core business which focuses on electronic devices and online services. In addition, there is a lack of clarity regarding the manufacturing process of the vehicle.

Apple's Special Projects Group experienced several reorganizations over the years, including reports of layoffs (PHK) in 2019, in which employees were transferred to other divisions in the company. Bloomberg reports that several Apple employees in the auto division may have been transferred to a generative artificial intelligence team.

It should be noted that Apple still has other automotive-related projects, including the CarPlay infotainment software. Apple claims CarPlay is currently installed in 80 percent of new vehicles.

This car project is part of Apple's internal efforts to find technology with great market potential. Apple is currently still developing health technology, especially for Apple Watch. In addition, the company has just released its first virtual reality headset, Vision Pro.

Meanwhile, several Apple competitors in China, especially smartphone manufacturer giants, have moved forward by investing heavily in car design and manufacturing. Xiaomi, for example, already has a mainstay electric car, namely SU7 with specifications that cannot be underestimated. Also, Huawei in collaboration with several Chinese automotive manufacturers has also produced several lines of vehicles supported by the latest technology.