Apple has brought back a longtime Apple executive to head up its secret car plans - and apparently that includes shifting the project's focus to autonomous driving, according to a new report.
Bloomberg said Bob Mansfield, who previously served as senior vice president of technologies, wants Project Titan to be more about a self-driving car system, though Apple has not yet scrapped its goal of a full-fledged, electric vehicle. The company is working on both the car and software to make it autonomous. It even hired the guy who ran BlackBerry's automotive software division.
Dan Dodge not only worked on self-driving technology but also QNX, a software platform found in many in-car infotainment systems. Dodge reports to Mansfield, just like all the other Project Titan engineers and employees, and Mansfield, who oversees three teams in the car division, reports directly to CEO Tim Cook. The teams consist of software, hardware engineering, and sensor.
John Wright leads software, while DJ Novtney leads hardware engineering, and Benjamin Lyon leads sensor. Check out Pocket-lint's Project Titan round-up to learn about other recent hires at Apple who have car body manufacturing and research experience. Apple also picked up Ford employee Todd Gray in May, for instance, according to Bloomberg.
Rumour has it Mansfield and Dodge are hoping to launch an Apple Car by 2021, though the company original targeted a 2020 release date. The delay is likely due to the departure of Steve Zadesky, who previously led the project.