Hyundai and Kia confirm Apple Car talks on hold

Hyundai and partner Kia have walked back rumours that they will be building an EV with Apple, with the Reuters reporting that companies are now saying they are not in talks with Apple Inc on developing autonomous vehicles.

We had earlier reported that the company was in talks with Hyundai Motors, but that the company was somewhat reluctant to be turned into just another ODM like Foxconn.

Last week Bloomberg reported that Kia on the other hand may receive an investment of up to 4 trillion won ($3.6 billion) as part of the project.

Today’s news saw shares of Hyundai and Kia dropped as much as 8.4% and 13.3% respectively.

Apple is reportedly looking for a partner for Project Titan, their plan to produce an autonomous EV. Instead of concentrating on fundamental technology, Apple will reportedly focus more on the styling and infotainment aspect of the vehicle. Apple reportedly plans to “re-imagine a car’s interior for a future in which people ride passively rather than steer,” with their Apple Car team reportedly “filled with dozens” of ex-Tesla hardware and software engineering.

The initial target for production is said to be 100,000 cars per year, which is quite a large entrance into what is still a nascent market.

If Apple does not secure a hardware partner, the project may be delayed as far as 2027-2030.