Tesla boss Elon Musk "celebrates" Apple giving up its ambitious electric car project
Majority of affected employees will reportedly be shifted to AI team.
2 min. read
Published on
Share this article
Improve this guide
Read our disclosure page to find out how can you help MSPoweruser sustain the editorial team Read more
Key notes
- Apple winding down electric car project, shifting 2,000 to AI team.
- Potential layoffs as affected employees can apply elsewhere.
- Competitor Tesla likely to benefit; Elon Musk reacts on Twitter.
Apple is reportedly “winding down” on its electric car project. Now, the Cupertino firm will reportedly move the majority of 2,000 people working on that project to its AI team instead.
Bloomberg first reported on Wednesday that Apple’s COO Jeff Williams and its VP, Kevin Lynch, shared the announcement internally. While affected employees could still apply for other positions in other teams at Apple, there could also be potential layoffs, too.
Their main competitor, Tesla, known for its software-driven approach to car design, is likely to benefit from this development. The company’s boss Elon Musk is having a field day, sharing the news on his X (fka Twitter) account with a saluting emoji and a cigarette.
According to the people familiar with the matter, as the publication says, Apple’s higher-ups have agreed on this move “in recent weeks.” Apple once predicted that, should these cars ever go public, it would have a $100,000 price tag.
Some speculate that Apple’s decision to abandon its electric car project, which was first developed back in 2014, might indicate a shift in strategy. Instead of building a complete car, they could focus on enhancing CarPlay, their existing in-car software platform, and then focus entirely on AI, the hottest piece of tech at the moment.
However, the reasons behind Apple’s decision remain under wraps, as the company declined to comment.
