For a good seven years, many in the auto industry have feared a secret project by the IT giant Apple. Under the code name “Titan”, Apple has set up its own auto division, which has been the subject of wild rumors for years. For a while, Apple specifically recruited experts in electric cars and autonomous driving from large car companies. However, Apple’s team was not able to show any quick successes – many of the car experts who were poached immediately looked for new jobs.
Now, however, there are increasing signs that Apple has made further progress with its car project, which is often referred to as “iCar”: Apple has landed a solicitation coup in Germany. According to manager-magazin information, top engineer Manfred Harrer is moving from the Stuttgart sports car manufacturer Porsche to Apple. First had Business Insider reports on the personnel.
Harrer was involved in the development of Porsche’s Taycan electric car and is considered an expert in autonomous driving. The engineer with a doctorate has been in charge of Porsche’s Cayenne SUV series since July 2020. Reveals about his upcoming move to Apple Harrer’s LinkedIn profile nothing yet. About his career: Before managing the Cayenne series, Harrer was head of chassis development at Porsche’s development center in Weissach for four years, where he was also responsible for vehicle dynamics and performance as well as chassis control systems. For the competitors BMW and Audi Harrer worked at the beginning of his career.
Possible contract manufacturers for Apple are already forming
The engineer, trained in Munich and at the University of Bath, did his doctorate on the characterization of the steering feel in vehicles. According to manager-magazin information, the vehicle construction expert also has good knowledge of autonomous driving – which can hardly be implemented without chassis construction expertise. This suggests that Apple is more advanced with its vehicle project and also wants to equip its possible electric car with advanced technology for autonomous driving.
Recently, there had also been further indications that Apple was making progress with its car project: A few weeks ago, the Bloomberg news agency reported that Hyundai to cooperate with Apple to build an electric car will. However, Hyundai withdrew the alleged confirmation within hours and only said that it would speak to several automakers about possible collaborations.
In addition, potential partners for Apple’s car manufacturing ambitions are already forming. For example, Daimler’s major shareholder, the Chinese carmaker Geely, has the same in January three partnerships launched in China. One of them should lead to the construction of electric cars with Apple’s contract manufacturer Foxconn. This suggests that Apple could also rely on the Foxconn-Geely cooperation for car manufacturing.
Hyundai, on the other hand, is no longer considered a potential Apple car partner among industry insiders after the latest reports. The Korean carmaker had initially confirmed to Bloomberg that it wanted to work with the IT giant on car manufacturing. The Koreans had softened the confirmation within hours and then officially only declared that they were talking to several companies about e-car cooperations.
But even this withdrawal should probably not have been enough for Apple. The tech group is notorious for its strict confidentiality on projects. As soon as a potential partner comes out as such, even semi-officially, according to many industry insiders, he is already “burned” for Apple – so it should no longer be considered for cooperation.
When it comes to battery technology, Apple could possibly approach its long-standing Chinese partner CATL, who will soon become the worldwide giants in the production of lithium-ion cells has risen.
There are also other candidates that Apple could look for in terms of automotive expertise: For example, the new auto giant Stellantis, the merger of the car manufacturers PSA (Peugeot, Citroën, Opel) and FCA, i.e. Fiat-Chrysler. FCA has long been rumored to have brought itself into play as a possible contract manufacturer for an Apple car. Apple and FCA are persistently silent, as is almost always the case with the “Titan” project. After all, there were recently rumors that Apple’s own car, powered entirely by electricity, to be launched in 2024.