Volswagen does not fear the possible arrival of an Apple car for the time being. That says CEO Herbert Diess of the Volkswagen Group on Sunday in an interview with Frankfurter Allgemeine Zeitung.
Apple is likely to enter the car market sometime in the future. The tech company has been exploring the possibilities of coming with a car for years and is said to have even been in talks with major manufacturers to outsource production. According to Herbert Diess of Volkswagen, it is a ‘very logical step’ for Apple to enter the car market. Apple can then combine its expertise in batteries, software and design with enormous financial resources.
Incidentally, Diess does not think that an electric and self-driving vehicle from Apple will come very soon, because the car industry is very different from the technology sector. Previously, Dyson, known for vacuum cleaners and fans, bit his teeth on the development of an electric car. Remarkably, Diess stated in December that it could just be that a tech company like Apple could one day become the largest party when it comes to providing mobility.
However, Diess is not concerned about the position of ‘traditional’ car manufacturers. One theory is that car manufacturers are turning into ‘contract manufacturers’ who build cars for a large tech company like Apple, but according to the German, an Apple Car does not necessarily set such a precedent. Various media outlets reported in recent months that Apple and Hyundai Motor Group have been working on an alliance to create self-driving cars together. However, those conversations have been canceled.
Sony
Apple isn’t the only tech company targeting the auto industry. The Japanese Sony presented an electric car in January 2020. Although the company has not yet confirmed that it will actually launch the vehicle, Sony started road tests in Austria in December.