iCar

Is Apple secretly researching automotive battery technology?

Tesla is building its massive Gigafactory in order to reduce the production cost for their electric vehicle battery by thirty percent and now Apple is rumored to be secretly working on automotive battery research and development though no specific details were provided.

According to a report Thursday by Shanghai-based news outlet Yicai Global, Apple partnered with Chinese battery maker Contemporary Amperex Technology Limited (CATL) on the project.

The publication speculates that the move could indicate that Apple’s car project involves not only autonomous driving software but also hardware. The two companies are working together on “a scheme”, based on a confidentiality agreement, in the field of batteries.

“If Apple is working with CATL on a battery, the possibility that Apple will continue to make cars cannot be ruled out as one of the core components of self-driving electric cars is the battery,” CCID Consulting’s New Energy Director Wu Hui told the outlet.

Another, less likely explanation could be that Apple may be planning to sell batteries of its own to makers of electric vehicles, or directly to consumers to power their homes. Because no specific details were provided, we can even speculate that these batteries could be used in Apple's data center, stores and other corporate facilities.

Here's drone flyover of Tesla's Gigafactory site, courtesy of Duncan Sinfield.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BkbA2FnQSpk

Founded in 2011, CATL is a spinoff of Amperex Technology Limited.

In 2012, a report claimed that Apple dropped Samsung and switched to Amperex for iPad and MacBook batteries. However, Amperex is nowhere to be found on the February 2017 list of Apple suppliers, and neither is its parent company.

Amperex produced a replacement battery for Samsung's ill-fated Note 7, but it too was plagued by a manufacturing issue that could cause it to catch fire due to the welding defect.

Rendering: Tesla's Gigafactory 1 outside Sparks, Nevada.

Apple’s self-driving technology testbed spotted driving on Silicon Valley roads

After obtaining a permit from the California Department of Motor Vehicles two weeks ago, first real-world images of the vehicle Apple's using to test its rumored autonomous driving software have now surfaced. Bloomberg was able to obtain photos of a sensor-laden white Lexus R450h SUV as it emerged from an Apple facility.

The car was outfitted with two radars, a bunch of cameras and a Velodyne 64-channel LiDAR, a detection system that works on the principle of radar but uses light from a laser.

Apple hires former NASA veterans for augmented reality and self-driving software testing

Apple has hired several expets from the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA), including three engineers who worked at the space organization's Jet Propulsion Laboratory. They, along with other engineers, have been tasked with working on Apple's rumored augmented reality projects and self-driving software initiatives.

According to the latest articles from Bloomberg, Dow Jones Newswire and Business Insider, a rare bureaucratic mistake has revealed Apple’s secret team of NASA veterans and experts holding PhDs in robotics and other related fields. They were apparently recruited for Project Titan, Apple's self-driving car project, and augmented reality, another not-so-secret Apple initiative.

Apple receives permit to test self-driving cars in California

Apple was added to the list of 29 other companies, including Tesla, Google, Ford and Mercedes, that are testing or planning to test self-driving vehicles in the state of California, according to the California Department of Motor Vehicles's (DMV) website Friday.

The permit allows Apple to test vehicles in autonomous mode on public roads.

It's unclear if Apple sought to obtain a permit because it wanted to test-drive its own autonomous vehicles or if the company was simply looking to experiment with the rumored autonomous driving features in a future CarPlay version.

Apple poached race car engineer from Porsche

Earlier this year, Apple poached Alexander Hitzinger, the former technical director of Porsche's race car program who helped the car maker return to the Le Mans endurance race, a company source told Reuters last Friday. The move was first reported by Germany's Manager Magazin.

Volkswagen-owned Porsche officially confirmed Hitzinger had left the luxury carmaker in the spring, but didn't share any further information.

Bloomberg: Apple gives up building a car, for now

Project Titan, Apple's ambitious initiative to build an electric vehicle by 2020-2021 reportedly fell apart amid management crisis, supply chain issues and departures, prompting the company's leadership to shift gears and focus on autonomous self-driving software, for now.

Bloomberg's Mark Gurman reported Monday that Apple will decide fate of self-driving software by late 2017 as the new direction no longer includes building its own car.

Here are Gene Munster’s latest musings on Project Titan & Apple VR headset

Piper Jaffray's Gene Munster had been infamously predicting an Apple-branded HDTV set for years before eventually giving up on that dream. Last we heard from him was when he called for an S-upgrade to the Apple Watch in February 2016 (he may have gotten that one right; the timing, not so much).

He's back now with some interesting thoughts (via AppleWorldToday) on Apple's rumored electric vehicle and assumed virtual reality headset hardware.

Small Korean firm rumored to co-develop advanced hollow batteries for Project Titan

Apple's rumored electric (autonomous?) vehicle, internally referred to as Project Titan, should use custom-designed batteries developed by engineers that Apple poached from A123 Systems, the makers of advanced batteries. According to a new report Tuesday, Apple has now tapped scientists and engineers from a small, unnamed South Korean firm to help co-develop hollow battery packs for Project Titan.