Apple's Electric Car Could Launch in 2028

It's the vaporware product that just won't go away. Apple's supposed electric vehicle is making waves again. A new report claims that Apple's secretive automotive project has gone through some major changes, and there's a new potential release window. The partially autonomous Apple car could be on roads as soon as 2028.

Analysts have been talking about Apple's car project for years, but the company has yet to even acknowledge it. Apple's car efforts are reportedly under the stewardship of Apple VP Kevin Lynch, who took over the project in 2021. Lynch's team is now targeting a less audacious version of Apple's first vehicle, known internally as Project Titan. That means that maybe, just maybe, it will actually hit the road in the coming years.

A new report from Bloomberg claims that Apple has set a 2028 release date for the car. That's still a long way off, but Apple is going to need all the time it can get. It's not a car company, and there are safety issues in transportation unlike Apple has dealt with in its other products.

Apple initially intended to release a vehicle with complete autonomy and no steering wheel, but self-driving features have proven difficult to build. Apple's early efforts came in the 2010s, when everyone thought cars would be driving themselves any day. However, even the most advanced hardware and software has shown only modest success navigating roadways. Google spin-off Waymo has been "testing" its self-driving vehicles for nearly a decade, and Tesla's Full Self Driving feature has been in public testing since 2020.

Apple VP Kevin Lynch on stage at WWDC 2019. Credit: Apple

The report claims Apple is now aiming for autonomy features under the SAE level 2 banner, which is where Tesla is currently aiming. That means you'd have to remain engaged and ready to take control of the car at any moment, a requirement Tesla had to be forced to take seriously. Only at SAE level 4 could you get away without a steering wheel, and computer vision is simply not there yet. Even minor disruptions to traffic or a sprinkling of snow can leave self-driving cars hopelessly confused.

With this simpler approach, Apple's board now feels confident Project Titan can evolve into a real product. However, some inside the company feel that scaling back to level 2 autonomy has drained Project Titan of any true innovation, the report said. If this vehicle does launch toward the end of the decade, it could be just another electric car. The Apple logo ensures it'll sell for a hefty premium, though.