Skip to main content
Sister Publication Links
  • Automotive News
  • Automobilwoche
  • Automotive News Canada
  • Automotive News China
Subscribe
  • Subscribe
  • Newsletters
  • Login
  • HOME
    • Latest news
    • Automakers
    • Suppliers
    • New Product
    • Environment/Emissions
    • Sales By Market
    • On The Move
    • Auto Shows
    • Munich Auto Show
    • Geneva Auto Show
    • Paris Auto Show
    • Beijing Auto Show
    • Shanghai Auto Show
  • Features
    • Long Read
    • Interview of the Month
    • Focus on Electrification
    • Focus on Technology
    • Segment Analysis
    • Cars & Concepts
    • Supplier Spotlight
    • Europe By The Numbers
  • Opinion
    • Blogs
    • Commentary
    • Guest columnists
  • Photos
    • Photo Galleries
    • Geneva Photo Gallery
    • Beijing Photo Gallery
    • Frankfurt Photo Gallery
    • Paris Photo Gallery
    • Shanghai Photo Gallery
  • Podcasts
  • Car Cutaways
  • EVENTS
    • ANE Congress
    • ANE Rising Stars
    • ANE Eurostars
    • Browse photos from the 2021 awards ceremony
  • More
    • Publishing Partners
    • Social Media
    • Contact Us
    • Media Kit
    • About Us
    • Capgemini: Securing the industry's future through a radical rethink
    • Capgemini: Succeeding with the automated driving journey through AI
    • HEXAGON: Plugging into data is the only way to make winning EVs
    • TUV Rheinland: Battery testing center for large battery packs and more
    • TUV Rheinland: Ideas, services and certifications for smart mobility
    • TUV Rheinland: Testing of automated and autonomous vehicles on test tracks
    • Toyota Europe
    • UFI Filters
    • Facebook
    • Instagram
    • LinkedIn
    • Twitter
MENU
Breadcrumb
  1. Home
  2. Focus on Technology
March 23, 2021 01:00 AM

Apple's car would rattle premium automakers most, report says

If produced, the vehicle will be electric and likely offer autonomous capability

Nick Gibbs
  • Tweet
  • Share
  • Share
  • Email
  • More
    Print
    Multicolored Apple logo

    Traditional premium automakers have the most to fear from a potential launch of a car by Apple, analysts at Bernstein believe, citing its ability to leverage its brand power to potentially sell 1.5. million units annually in that sector by 2030.

    Apple has never officially revealed it is working on a car, but the company reportedly started the project in 2014 and has been refining it ever since.

    More recently Apple has been looking for manufacturing partners. Hyundai and Nissan were candidates, according to reports, but no agreement has been reached.

    Apple's ability to equip cars with a software ecosystem used by millions of its iPhone owners is perhaps its greatest asset, said Bernstein's Arndt Ellinghorst in a Q&A discussion hosted by the research company. "That's why I think it's one of the biggest scares for traditional automakers out there," he said, citing premium brands specifically. "They would be much more scared by an Apple than by a Rivian or a Lucid or a Fisker or even by a Nio."

    Apple's ability to equip cars with a software ecosystem used by millions of its iPhone owners is perhaps its greatest asset, Bernstein analyst Arndt Ellinghorst said.

    Massive AI project

    An Apple car would be electric and likely offer autonomous capability, one area that the secretive company has spoken about. In 2017 CEO Tim Cook talked about the company's research into autonomy, calling it  "the mother of all AI [artificial intelligence] projects."

    Bernstein estimates that Apple wouldn't launch its car before 2024-25 and potentially not until 2028. The analyst firm also warned that given the hurdles that remain it is "not convinced" Apple will go through with the car project despite working on it for nearly seven years.

    "Apple has a very high bar for introducing new products, and has abandoned new offerings in the past very late in development," Toni Sacconaghi, Bernstein's IT hardware and U.S. electric vehicles analyst said.

    He cited company's plans to offer its own TV, a project that was shelved despite Apple having lined up a supply chain to make it. "I spoke with a senior engineer at Apple who said, ‘Eighty percent of what I work on never sees the light of day'," Sacconaghi added.

    Middle of the pack

    Apple is working on autonomous software but doesn't have a technology  lead based on test reports submitted to U.S. transportation authorities seen by Bernstein.

    The reports show that Apple is in the middle of the pack based on the number of autonomous miles driven and miles between disengagements (how far the vehicle goes before a human needed to take over).

    Google parent Alphabet's autonomous driving unit, Waymo, is in front on miles between disengagements, while self-driving technology company Cruise, which is majority-owned by General Motors, leads on autonomous miles driven.

    Apple appears to have no breakthrough on battery cell technology either, according to research into patents filed. It would also likely be too late into the sector to form an exclusive partnership with a cell supplier on new chemistry.

    "We think a hurdle for Apple is being able to offer a unique driving range," Sacconaghi said.

    Design & proprietary software

    With no specific lead on autonomy or battery technology, Apple will have to rely on the same marriage between design and proprietary software that make its phones so profitable.

    "That will be the distinctive value proposition for the car. The question will ultimately be: Is that distinctive enough for Apple to launch the car?" Sacconaghi said.

    The analysts didn't foresee Apple having any trouble distributing its cars given it could leverage its 500-store global network, which is larger than Tesla's at about 300 stores.

    Manufacturing is considered a bigger problem by Bernstein. Apple is reportedly looking at a contract arrangement with an established automaker, but finding a partner has proved elusive.

    "It would need to be someone with manufacturing capabilities in the U.S., China and Europe because cars are not easy to ship around [the world]," Ellinghorst said.

    He also said there would need to be "no or very few conflicts of brand equity and segment positioning," suggesting a mass-market automaker. A contract manufacturer such as Magna Steyr would likely be too small, he said.

    An alternative was partnership, with Ellinghorst suggesting BMW. However, Apple's desire to control its ecosystem could make that option "highly unlikely," Sacconaghi said.

    'No easy way to build a car'

    The Bernstein analysts warned Apple that vehicle making is hard. "The one thing that's very often underestimated, especially in the tech world, there is no easy way to build a car," Ellinghorst said.

    That point was echoed recently by Toyota Motor President Akio Toyoda, who said that the automotive business goes beyond manufacturing and software.

    "After making a vehicle, I would like them [Apple] to be prepared to deal with customers and various changes for some 40 years," Toyoda said at a news conference held by the Japan Automobile Manufacturers Association.

    British household products maker Dyson abruptly canceled its electric car in 2019 after realizing it would have to charge more than 150,000 pounds ($181,885) for the SUV, owner James Dyson revealed last year.

    Apple could do the same, Sacconaghi said: "If it really believes it has something truly distinctive, it will bring it to market. And if it doesn't, we won't see it."

    RECOMMENDED FOR YOU
    Bentley's readies 'revolutionary' car building solution
    Recommended for You
    Bentley production in Crewe, England
    Bentley's readies 'revolutionary' car building solution
    BMW i4 with bio waste paint
    How BMW, BASF turn sewage, manure into sustainable paints
    Geely Shufu
    Geely-backed tech firm ECARX to go public in $3.8B blank-check deal
    Sign up for free newsletters
    EMAIL ADDRESS

    Please enter a valid email address.

    Please enter your email address.

    Please verify captcha.

    Please select at least one newsletter to subscribe.

    You can unsubscribe at any time through links in these emails. For more information, see our Privacy Policy.

    Get Free Newsletters

    Sign up and get the best of Automotive News Europe delivered straight to your email inbox, free of charge. Choose your news – we will deliver.

    You can unsubscribe at any time through links in these emails. For more information, see our Privacy Policy.

    SUBSCRIBE TODAY

    Get 24/7 access to in-depth, authoritative coverage of the auto industry from a global team of reporters and editors covering the news that’s vital to your business.

    SUBSCRIBE NOW
    Connect with Us
    • Twitter
    • Facebook
    • LinkedIn
    • Instagram

    Founded in 1996, Automotive News Europe is the preferred information source for decision-makers and opinion leaders operating in Europe.

    Contact Us

    1155 Gratiot Avenue
    Detroit MI  48207-2997
    Tel: +1 877-812-1584

    Email Us

    ISSN 2643-6590 (print)
    ISSN 2643-6604 (online)

     

    Resources
    • About us
    • Contact Us
    • Advertise with us
    • Advertise with Us
    • Ad Choices Ad Choices
    • Sitemap
    Awards
    • Rising Stars
    • Eurostars
    • Leading Women
    Legal
    • Terms and Conditions
    • Privacy Policy
    • Privacy Request
    Automotive News Europe
    Copyright © 1996-2022. Crain Communications, Inc. All Rights Reserved.
    • HOME
      • Latest news
      • Automakers
      • Suppliers
      • New Product
      • Environment/Emissions
      • Sales By Market
      • On The Move
      • Auto Shows
        • Munich Auto Show
        • Geneva Auto Show
        • Paris Auto Show
        • Beijing Auto Show
        • Shanghai Auto Show
    • Features
      • Long Read
      • Interview of the Month
      • Focus on Electrification
      • Focus on Technology
      • Segment Analysis
      • Cars & Concepts
      • Supplier Spotlight
      • Europe By The Numbers
    • Opinion
      • Blogs
      • Commentary
      • Guest columnists
    • Photos
      • Photo Galleries
      • Geneva Photo Gallery
      • Beijing Photo Gallery
      • Frankfurt Photo Gallery
      • Paris Photo Gallery
      • Shanghai Photo Gallery
    • Podcasts
    • Car Cutaways
    • EVENTS
      • ANE Congress
      • ANE Rising Stars
      • ANE Eurostars
        • Browse photos from the 2021 awards ceremony
    • More
      • Publishing Partners
        • Capgemini: Securing the industry's future through a radical rethink
        • Capgemini: Succeeding with the automated driving journey through AI
        • HEXAGON: Plugging into data is the only way to make winning EVs
        • TUV Rheinland: Battery testing center for large battery packs and more
        • TUV Rheinland: Ideas, services and certifications for smart mobility
        • TUV Rheinland: Testing of automated and autonomous vehicles on test tracks
        • Toyota Europe
        • UFI Filters
      • Social Media
        • Facebook
        • Instagram
        • LinkedIn
        • Twitter
      • Contact Us
      • Media Kit
      • About Us