Reports have revealed that Apple has concluded “much of the core work” targeted at creating a new processor meant to power an autonomous electric car project known as Titan, this report was disclosed by Bloomberg. The report also discloses that Apple is reportedly now accelerating its timeline for developing the autonomous electric car with a new target of launching it in the next four years.
The goal for Project Titan right now, after multiple pivots, is to reveal an autonomous vehicle that doesn’t come with a steering wheel. The interior of this vehicle would be spacious just like the interior of the limousine-style seating arrangement that EV startup Canoo has adopted for its electric prototypes. Although Apple was at some point trying to acquire Canoo, earlier in the year but eventually settled with hiring one of the startup’s co-founders. Also within the interior of the car would be a large, iPad-style touchscreen display that will display a user interface similar to iOS.
The business model for project Titan is still reportedly undecided or maybe undisclosed. Apple has considered creating a self-driving fleet to compete with the likes of Uber, Lyft, and Waymo (something Tesla proposed but is still unable to execute), but reports reveal that it is most likely that Apple plans to sell the cars to individuals.
According to The Verge, on the electric vehicle side of things, Apple is reportedly not looking to develop a proprietary charging cable for the car. Instead, it wants to make the vehicle compatible with the “combined charging system,” or CCS standard, which would make it possible to charge the vehicle at most public fast-charging stations.
Of course, all of this comes after years of reported changes to the project, which was started in 2014. Five different executives have run Project Titan after Apple Watch lead Kevin Lynch took over earlier this year. The refocusing and timeline shift reported by Bloomberg could be a sign that significant progress is being made with him at the helm, or it could just become the newest footnote in whatever the project turns into next.
