Perhaps one day, the Apple car will be a reality.
The Apple car is dead. According to Automotive News, Hyundai Motor Group has stated that it and the tech giant have stopped negotiations to form a partnership for an automotive project. Hyundai stated in January that they were meeting to discuss the possibility of collaborating.
According to Automotive News, Hyundai stated that they are not in talks with Apple about developing autonomous vehicles.
The side that suspended negotiations is not known. Some executives at Hyundai were concerned that Hyundai would be an Apple contract manufacturer, just like Foxconn is for the iPhone.
According to rumors, Kia would build the Apple car in a new Georgia factory. It was possible that the two companies had even developed a prototype version of the vehicle by 2022. The sales could have begun as early as 2024.
Although the news of the negotiations was only reported in the last few days, it is believed that these talks have been ongoing since 2018, according Automotive News citing a Reuters article.
Apple still has an internal team working on the car as of early 2021. Some former Tesla engineers are part of the crew. If the project is successful, a complete vehicle could be completed between 2024-2028.
Volkswagen Group was, allegedly, going to be Apple’s partner in the automotive project before Hyundai. They would create an electric, autonomous version of the VW Transporter van to be used on the company’s campus. Although this was widely rumored but never confirmed, it was not officially announced.