Apple kills its secret electric car project

Apple told employees it's ending its decadelong, multibillion dollar electric vehicle project

(Image credit: Josh Edelson / AFP via Getty Images)

published 28 February 2024

What happened?

Apple told employees on Tuesday it's ending its secretive electric vehicle project, said Bloomberg . Many of the people working on the decadelong, multibillion-dollar Project Titan are being reassigned to Apple's generative AI unit.

Who said what?

"Apple had such an aura of being able to create really innovative, easy-to-use stuff," automakers feared an Apple Car "would be tough to compete with," retired General Motors executive Phil Abram told The Wall Street Journal. But that threat was distant "because everybody knew how hard it was to build cars."

The commentary

The now-defunct Apple Car project was "one of Silicon Valley's worst-kept secrets because it was being tested on public roads," The New York Times said. An "all-electric sedan emblazoned with the Apple logo may never pass you on the expressway," Matteo Wong said at The Atlantic, but with Apple's iPhone-connecting CarPlay software standard in nearly every new vehicle, "the Apple Car already exists, and you've almost certainly ridden in one."

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What next?

Apple "continues to invest heavily in other areas," Bloomberg said, and "ultimately, focusing on AI may be a better bet."

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Peter has worked as a news and culture writer and editor at The Week since the site's launch in 2008. He covers politics, world affairs, religion and cultural currents. His journalism career began as a copy editor at a financial newswire and has included editorial positions at The New York Times Magazine, Facts on File, and Oregon State University.