After a brief period of quiet, Apple Car rumours have once again picked up – and moved to Germany, apparently.
A German newspaper reports that Apple has built a “secret lab” in Berlin to develop the long-rumoured Apple Car.
According to Frankfurter Allgemeine Zeitung, Apple has employed between 15 and 20 automotive experts at the mysterious facility.
The report cites the workers as having experience in engineering, manufacturing, software, and sales.
The staff are also described as “progressive thinkers”, who were selected based on their innovative ideas
A concept render of the Apple Car
It’s also said that Apple is considering using Austrian-based Magna Steyr– an automotive manufacturer – to build the Apple Car, according to the newspaper’s anonymous source.
Magna Steyr is a subsidiary of Magna International. It is headquartered in Graz, Austria, was founded in 2001, and has around 10,500 employees.
The company builds 200,000 vehicles a year, and developed Mercedes-Benz’s ‘4Matic’ four-wheel drive system.
It also develops cars on behalf of manufacturers like BMW, Audi, Fiat, Peugeot, and Aston Martin.
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The Apple Car has been rumoured for years, and is generally expected to arrive as an electric vehicle in 2019 or 2020.
Early rumours suggested the Apple Car would actually be a minivan, while others speculate that the vehicle will be completely autonomous.
Apple has remained coy about the prospect of an Apple Car and, despite growing evidence of its existence, officially denies any direct involvement in car manufacturing.
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What would you like to see from an Apple Car? Let us know in the comments.
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Editorial independence
Editorial independence means being able to give an unbiased verdict about a product or company, with the avoidance of conflicts of interest. To ensure this is possible, every member of the editorial staff follows a clear code of conduct.
Professional conduct
We also expect our journalists to follow clear ethical standards in their work. Our staff members must strive for honesty and accuracy in everything they do. We follow the IPSO Editors’ code of practice to underpin these standards.
