News revolving around Project Titan, the codename for the Apple Car initiative, is starting to pick up again.
According to a report from Bloomberg, Apple has started to make some key hires again, as it builds out the team putting together a vehicle with the Apple logo imprinted on it. This new report suggests Apple is turning towards self-driving software, in addition to building out the Apple Car itself.
Part of that includes hiring Dan Dodge, the former founder and CEO of QNX software. That software was acquired by BlackBerry many years ago, and it’s software that is found in vehicles today. As for developing self-driving software, the report states this is meant to open up options for Apple, if it were to go a route where it partners with an auto manufacturer, or buy one outright.
“The initiative is now prioritizing the development of an autonomous driving system, though it’s not abandoning efforts to designing Apple’s own vehicle. That leaves options open should the company eventually decide to partner with or acquire an established car maker, rather than building a car itself. An Apple spokesman declined to comment.”
The report digs in a bit deeper in regards to the team working on the Apple Car as well, noting that Bob Mansfield is indeed leading the project after being brought back into the Apple fold recently. On top of that, the team consist of “a software team under John Wright; a sensors group headed by Benjamin Lyon; and a unit of hardware engineers led by D.J. Novotney.”
This report arrives just days after another story saying the Apple Car’s expected launch had been pushed back to 2021, with internal road bumps causing the pushback. One of those instances was the departure of Steve Zadesky, the former lead of the Apple Car project. Now that Mansfield has taken the reins, though, it would appear that the project is still moving forward.