San Francisco: Apple has hired two former Mercedes engineers to join the company as product design engineers at Apple's Special Projects Group, hired presumably for the 'Apple Car'.
According to MacRumors, these engineers have prior experience in mass production of vehicles, steering, dynamics, software and project management.
Mercedes had already worked with Apple as it adds CarPlay and Apple Music features to its range.
Reliable Apple analyst Ming-Chi Kuo earlier claimed that the launch of the Apple Car is unlikely to happen until 2025-2027. In a research note, Kuo said that Apple Car specifications are yet to be finalised, adding that he would not be surprised if the vehicle's launch timeframe is pushed even further to 2028 or later.
However, Kuo had cited three main issues with Apple Car: Uncertainty about the launch timing, uncertainty about the supplier and vehicle specs, and uncertainty around Apple's competitiveness in the EV and self-driving car market.
The upcoming Appel can is expected to use a "C1" chip based on the A12 Bionic processor with in-cabin AI capabilities such as eye-tracking.
Apple will require a chip foundry with capacity for automotive processes, which Samsung or TSMC could supply to Apple.
The Apple Car, internally codenamed "Project Titan," is one of the company's most secretive projects. However, Apple's ultimate goal in the automotive space remains unclear now.