More details have emerged about Apple’s alleged interest in working on a self-driving electric car in partnership with Hyundai Motor. An article from the local newspaper IT News in Korea (via Reuters) proposes today that Hyundai and Apple plan to sign a partnership agreement by March this year.
Apple Car and Hyundai
Today’s report comes after a Hyundai spokesman confirmed last week that he was in talks with Apple about a potential Apple Car production deal. “We understand that Apple is in talks with a variety of global automakers, including Hyundai Motor,” a spokesman at the time said. “Since the discussion is at an early stage, nothing has been decided.”
IT News in Korea says Hyundai and Apple plan to reach an agreement for autonomous electric cars by March 2021. Production could then begin “as early as 2024 in the United States.” “The report cites industry sources and says that Apple and Hyundai would build the cars at the Kia Motors factor in Georgia, or ‘jointly invest in a new factory in the United States.’
The two planning companies hope to produce 100,000 vehicles by 2024, which will eventually reach 400,000 annually. The report adds that a ‘beta version’ of Apple Car could start testing next year.
The timeline suggested by this IT News in Korea report is very aggressive, and has been questioned by other sources such as Bloomberg and Ming-Chi Kuo. Following reporting of Reuters last month suggesting that Apple Car could start production in 2024, Kuo indicated that a launch could be in 2028 or later.
Finally, a report from Bloomberg just last week indicated that an Apple Car release is at least 5-7 years away. That said, Apple is believed to be expanding the Apple Car team at a rapid pace with engineers, former Tesla drivers and designers.
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