Apple Hires Former BMW i3 & i8 Exec For Electric Car Project

Apple has been touting an EV on and off for years. It this the real deal now?

By: Steven Loveday

Jun 11, 2021 at 8:58am ET

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According to a recent article by Autoblog, based on information from sources familiar with the matter, Apple has hired Ulrich Kranz to head up its electric car project. Kranz is a former BMW executive with ties to the i3 and i8. A spokesperson from Apple has confirmed the hiring of Kranz.

A few months ago, Kranz left his role at self-driving startup Canoo, and it seems Apple jumped on the opportunity to hire him rather quickly. Kranz was actually the co-founder and CEO of Canoo. He left a senior vice president position at BMW to move forward with Canoo. His group at BMW worked on developing the i3 electric car and i8 plug-in hybrid.

For years, people have talked about the parallels between Tesla and Apple. There has also been much talk about the potential for the companies to join hands. Moreover, skeptics have pointed to a potential Apple Car as a "nail in the coffin" for Tesla. However, while Tesla continues to innovate, build global factories, and outsell all other EVs across the globe, Apple has certainly been taking its time.

Apple has also been very wishy-washy about its EVs plans, promising to bring the Apple Car to market, changing its mind, looking to other companies to build its cars, canceling the project, reinstating the project, and now, hiring a top legacy auto executive.

Many Apple fans will tell you this hire is a big deal since it means Apple definitely has plans to bring an EV to market. However, until there's proof that a car is actually coming, we're not holding our breath. Nonetheless, we'd love to see an Apple EV become reality, and we hope Kranz is the answer. If any company has what it takes to follow Tesla's lead, Apple should be on the list, but it could be a long road ahead.

What do you think?

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Apple's car efforts started way back in 2014, but after just two years, the company decided to table the project in favor of an autonomous driving platform. Several Tesla executives have moved to Apple over the years, but there's still no sign of any car or related platform.

Do you have any faith in an upcoming Apple Car? Is this recent Apple hire enough to really get the ball rolling? Let us know your thoughts on this in the comment section below.