Hyundai and Kia confirm 'Apple Car' talks have ended
South Korean carmaker Hyundai and affiliate Kia have declared they are no longer in negotiations with Apple to manufacture the rumored Apple Car.
Following a flurry of reports about Apple's talks with Hyundai and Kia about the 'Apple Car,' Hyundai has publicly admitted it's no longer in discussions with the iPhone maker about the project.
In a regulatory filing, Hyundai and Kia said the two firms had received requests from multiple outfits about self-driving electric car development, but no decision had been made as the talks were at the early stages. Bloomberg reports Hyundai's shares dropped 8.4% after the filing, and Kia fell 14%.
The two car producers were reported in January to be in discussions with Apple about the 'Apple Car,' talks Hyundai unusually confirmed before backing away from the statement. Apple was reportedly upset with the public disclosure.
On Friday, the discussions between the companies were paused, with internal disagreements with Hyundai having the potential to derail plans altogether.
While the talks were occurring, there was the suggestion Hyundai would bring production to the United States, operating a factory in Georgia controlled by Kia with a view to producing 100,000 cars by 2024. It could have also involved an investment of 4 trillion won (about $3.6 billion) from Apple to make the project a reality.
Production duties could have been handed over to Kia completely, as Hyundai was concerned its brand reputation would be damaged by becoming an assembler for other car companies instead of working on its own products. Executives were allegedly "agonizing" over the decision.
Hyundai and Kia weren't the only companies Apple was talking to about the "Apple Car," as the iPhone maker was allegedly speaking to at least six Japanese automakers at the same time.
Following a flurry of reports about Apple's talks with Hyundai and Kia about the 'Apple Car,' Hyundai has publicly admitted it's no longer in discussions with the iPhone maker about the project.
In a regulatory filing, Hyundai and Kia said the two firms had received requests from multiple outfits about self-driving electric car development, but no decision had been made as the talks were at the early stages. Bloomberg reports Hyundai's shares dropped 8.4% after the filing, and Kia fell 14%.
The two car producers were reported in January to be in discussions with Apple about the 'Apple Car,' talks Hyundai unusually confirmed before backing away from the statement. Apple was reportedly upset with the public disclosure.
On Friday, the discussions between the companies were paused, with internal disagreements with Hyundai having the potential to derail plans altogether.
While the talks were occurring, there was the suggestion Hyundai would bring production to the United States, operating a factory in Georgia controlled by Kia with a view to producing 100,000 cars by 2024. It could have also involved an investment of 4 trillion won (about $3.6 billion) from Apple to make the project a reality.
Production duties could have been handed over to Kia completely, as Hyundai was concerned its brand reputation would be damaged by becoming an assembler for other car companies instead of working on its own products. Executives were allegedly "agonizing" over the decision.
Hyundai and Kia weren't the only companies Apple was talking to about the "Apple Car," as the iPhone maker was allegedly speaking to at least six Japanese automakers at the same time.
Comments
* I never believed Apple would bring a CDMA over a GSM iPhone to market first.
what do you do with almost 2-3 trillion liquid? Nothing... at least do it 100% apple not borrow some bs platform from some garbage car maker...
For him to say that no one can possibly make a name for themselves in a new market category is foolish, and even more so when you consider he's pushing a company that came from nowhere and didn't have—and still doesn't have—the connections, supply chain, and money to start an automotive company from scratch that Apple has at its disposable.
An iphone is an iPhone is an iPhone 100% apple.
It's not "IF".... That's been firmly settled....
Betting against Elon Musk is a bit like betting against Tom Brady because both have variety of weapons at their disposal and neither likes to lose.
Reportedly it was Hyundai who rejected Apple.
And I think we’d all agree, what Apple does brilliantly is disrupt existing markets. In that context, not being first or even close to first in the EV market is an advantage for Apple.