London CNN —Apple has abandoned decade-long efforts to build a self-driving electric car, according to multiple media reports, calling time on a project that some saw as potentially transformative for the auto industry.
The news comes as electric vehicle (EV) sales have disappointed, prompting several major manufacturers to pull back on investments.
Apple had been hiring automotive executives since at least 2014 and, in April 2017, it received a permit from the California Department of Motor Vehicles to test self-driving vehicles.
Two years later, it acquired Drive.ai, a self-driving car startup.
In 2020, Morgan Stanley analysts said an Apple car had the potential to be “a transformative event” for the automobile and mobility industry in the coming decades, much as the iPhone disrupted the mobile phone industry.
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London CNN —, Morgan Stanley
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London CNN, London CNN — Apple, Bloomberg, CNN, Apple, California Department of Motor Vehicles, BMW