 "At one point Apple came close to acquiring Tesla, but deal fell since Elon Musk wanted to be Apple CEO")
It was only recently that reports surfaced that claimed Apple was officially abandoning its AI-powered smart car. The news, which was first reported by Bloomberg sent shockwaves across the tech as well as the auto industry. What’s more shocking though is the fact that Apple could have been where Tesla is in terms of EV, and Elon Musk, at the helm of the company
Now, a new report by The New York Times provides further insight into the internal struggles within the Project Titan team, based on conversations with several individuals who were involved in the project over the past decade.
The report also reveals what Apple had planned for the Apple Car, and how it would be controlled. Apple had planned that the smart car would have no steering wheel and would have been completely controlled by Apple’s AI assistant, Siri.
What’s more interesting is that there was a chance in 2015 that things could have gone completely different for Apple, Tesla, Tim Cook, and Elon Musk.
Apple had the chance to acquire Tesla long before it made EVs popular and cool, and much before Tesla exploded as a brand. Moreover, the board at Apple also had the chance to get Elon Musk to be the CEO of Apple.
While some of the information around this development has been public knowledge for some time, thanks to NYT technology reporter Tripp Mickle’s book “After Steve,” the New York Times report has some new information that sheds more light into what went down.
Impact Shorts
More ShortsAround 2015, when Tesla was developing the Model 3, the EV tech company was on the verge of bankruptcy, several times. At this point, Apple too was in the process of developing its own EV, Project Titan.
During one of Tesla’s particularly challenging phases, Elon Musk approached Tim Cook, proposing the idea that Apple acquire Tesla. However, Cook allegedly declined the meeting.
A few months later, the Wall Street Journal reported that around the time Musk approached Cook, the Apple CEO was also reaching out to the Tesla CEO exploring a possible acquisition. However, this report revealed something else.
Musk was open to the idea of Apple acquiring Tesla, but he had one condition — that he would not be the CEO of Tesla, but of Apple. Cook would take up a position higher up on the board, and could appoint anyone he wanted to take the reigns of Tesla.
Both Cook and Musk have on multiple occasions denied having such discussions, with neither even confirming prior communication between them. It was only in 2020, that Musk revealed that he had approached Cook with the idea of acquiring Tesla, but certain things that would have been crucial to the acquisition simply did not materialise on time.
The latest report from The New York Times adds more intrigue to this narrative. It reveals that Apple did engage in talks with Elon Musk about acquiring Tesla, but ultimately decided to pursue building its own car rather than integrating another company.
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