Automotive

Ford finally rolling out CarPlay starting with 2017 Escape model in May

Christian Zibreg ∙ March 18, 2016

Car maker Ford said on Friday that a new Escape model is going to officially become its first vehicle with CarPlay and Android Auto integration. Ford's 2017 Escape puts emphasis on maintaining the quality that made the vehicle an award-winner and the second best-selling Ford product in the United States last year.

In addition to CarPlay and Android Auto, the new Escape also includes a capable driver-assist technology and all-new Sync Connect that supports features like remote start and door locking through the new FordPass platform.

iPhone jailbreaking pioneer George Hotz secures funding for his self-driving car kit

Christian Zibreg ∙ March 9, 2016

George Hotz, one of the pioneers of the early jailbreak scene who used to go by the code-name “GeoHot”, has managed to secure funding for his self-driving kit, Forbes reported Wednesday. Among those interested in his project: the CEOs of graphics giant Nvidia and auto parts supplier Delphi.

Both CEOs have paid visits to Hotz's basement office in San Francisco’s Potrero Hill neighborhood. In fact, Nvidia's boss sponsored Hotz's project with high-performance GPU cards woth $30,000.

But more important than that, he's scored an unannounced seed investment from venture capital firm Andreessen Horowitz, valuing the fledgling company at $20 million, according to sources.

Fiat CEO advises Apple against building a car on its own

Christian Zibreg ∙ March 2, 2016

Fiat CEO Sergio Marchionne has a piece of advice for Apple regarding Silicon Valley's worst-kept secret that it is building an electrical vehicle: don't do it on your own but if you must, have an established car maker mass produce a custom vehicle for you according to your specifications.

“If they have any urges to make a car, I'd advise them to lie down and wait until the feeling passes,” Marchionne told journalists at the Geneva auto show.

Apple leases old Pepsi bottling plant near its not-so-secret Project Titan industrial complex

Christian Zibreg ∙ March 2, 2016

According to The Silicon Valley Business Journal, Apple in November 2015 quietly leased a 96,000-square-foot site in Sunnyvale, California which used to be Pepsi's bottling plant.

Interestingly enough, this industrial property is located in the neighborhood of a complex of warehouses and offices which Apple leased about a year ago for purposes unknown to the public (hint: permits mention things like an “auto work area” and a “repair garage”).

Cook: Apple ultimately may decide not to make a car at all

Christian Zibreg ∙ February 22, 2016

In a Q&A with Adam Lashinsky of Fortune published Monday, Apple's boss Tim Cook suggested that his company ultimately may decide not to make a car at all, but hinted Apple is “exploring” various “technologies” and “products” in general.

He also responded to concerns about peak iPhone, talked about how Apple behaves in a down cycle and how the company’s culture is evolving, revealed that Apple will start moving into its upcoming iSpaceship in 2017 and explained why services are important in Apple’s product mix, among other topics of interest.

Hyundai confirms CarPlay will launch in 2016 Sonata, with a twist

Christian Zibreg ∙ December 28, 2015

The Detroit Free Press reported Monday that the automobile manufacturer Hyundai Motor Company will release CarPlay-enabled Sonata in the first quarter of 2016. Apple’s software platform for the car will require Sonata owners to “buy an SD card with new software” to access CarPlay features.

This sounds like an odd implementation of CarPay given that Hyundai already offers Google's Android Auto software integration at no additional charge.

iPhone jailbreaking pioneer George Hotz is building a self-driving car of his own

Christian Zibreg ∙ December 16, 2015

George Hotz aka ”Geohot”, one of the pioneers of the early jailbreak scene, is building a self-driving car of its own, according to a lengthy profile published today by Bloomberg Businessweek.

If you frequent this website, you're probably aware that Hotz is credited with becoming the first person to carrier-unlock an iPhone, which allowed users to use their handset with other carriers.

Much like he'd hacked the original iPhone, he's now done the same with his ordinary 2016 Acura ILX sedan. Working in his garage, he's managed to turn the Acura into a self-driving vehicle in about a month, by putting a laser-based radar on the roof, mounting a camera near the rearview mirror and attaching a 21.5-inch screen and a joystick to the dashboard.

Steve Jobs considered Apple car eight years ago

Christian Zibreg ∙ November 4, 2015

According to the famous iPod creator, former Apple engineer and Nest founder Tony Fadell, Steve Jobs did consider an idea of Apple building a car as far back as 2008, but ultimately decided not to move forward because he had other projects on his mind.

In a video interview with Bloomberg, Fadell said that Jobs and himself discussed how a hypothetical Apple car would we build, what features it would have, what a dashboard would be like and so forth.

Apple poaches Nvidia’s director of deep learning

Christian Zibreg ∙ Updated May 20, 2016

Apple has hired Nvidia's director of deep learning, Jonathan Cohen, Re/code reported today. As is its wont, Apple declined to comment but news of Cohen's hiring has since been officially confirmed via his LinkedIn profile, in which he states that he's been with Apple since earlier this month.

The publication speculates that Cohen might be joining Apple's autonomous car project in unknown capacity. As you know, Apple is rumored to be developing an electric or autonomous car, dubbed Project Titan.

WSJ: Apple speeds up electric car project, now targeting 2019 as a prospective shipping date

Christian Zibreg ∙ September 21, 2015

Apple’s rumored electric project, code-named Project Titan, has sped up development as the Cupertino company now targets 2019 as a prospective shipping date, The Wall Street Journal said Monday.

In fact, Apple has internally designating the rumored electric vehicle as a “committed project” after it spent more than a year investigating the feasibility of an Apple-branded car, including meetings with two groups of government officials in California.

Apple’s car project apparently ‘ready to leave lab’

Christian Zibreg ∙ September 18, 2015

The Guardian is reporting today that Apple's rumored electric (driverless?) car developed under the code-name Project Titan is “ready to leave the lab.” As the project now has an official Engineering Program Manager, Apple is reportedly moving to “coordinate the work of teams of hardware and software engineers.”

The story also claims that Apple executives recently met with officials at California’s department of motor vehicles (DMV) to discuss their plans for an “autonomous vehicle.” DMW would only say that “the Apple meeting was to review DMV’s autonomous vehicle regulations.”

Apple adds yet another former Tesla engineer to Project Titan team

Cody Lee ∙ Updated April 18, 2018

Apple has hired yet another former Tesla engineer for its growing Project Titan team, reports MacRumors. The site points to the LinkedIn profile of Hal Ockerse, which shows he was an engineering manager at the electric car company before joining Apple in August as a "software engineer."

Ockerse's profile doesn't offer any details about his new position, but he's likely working on Apple's "Titan" electric car project. At Tesla, he worked on hardware architecture and advanced driver assistance system components, such as hi-res cameras, radars, LiDAR and engine control units.