more and more evidence mounts up to testify that
Apple is working on a car, and the latest scoop by
Bloomberg reveals that Cupertino might be ready
to unveil the electric vehicle as early as 2020.
The alleged Apple Car (the iCar?) will face
electric vehicle rivals from the likes of Tesla
Model III, the $35,000 sedan that is planned to
come in 2017 and sport a massive, 200-mile
range. The 200-mile range has often been said to
be a milestone, ‘the inflection point’ (in the
words of Steve LeVine) that will bring on electric
cars to a true mainstream level.
Apple certainly has the cash to build out car
operations quickly. With $178 billion in the bank
and a net profit of north of $18 billion in its last
(and strongest so far) quarter, the company
could easily buy out the multi-billion facilities.
With the example set by Tesla, it is now clear
that the barriers for entering the automotive
industry are not as high as one would imagine.
At the same time, many analysts and insiders like
former Apple executive Jean-Louis Gassee have
put reports about the Apple Car under serious
doubt saying that the Wall Street Journal (the
publication that first reported on this) is
mistakenly reading Apple’s efforts in building
better car info-tainment with a full-blown car
production. Insiders speaking for WSJ,
Bloomberg, and other media traditionally used by
Apple for its controlled release of its future
plans, however, continue adding more fuel to the
symbolic Apple Car rumor fire.
One disclaimer is due: all reports mention that -
just like with many other prototypes - the Apple
Car is by no means a product that has
guarantees to arrive to market. In the late fall
of 2014, Tim Cook has said in an interview that
Apple has many products in development that had
not even leaked out yet, but the company is not
going to release all of them.
source: Bloomberg
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