Apple wanted to buy Tesla and use Siri instead of a steering wheel in its self-driving car

The New York Times shared details of Project Titan, within which Apple developed its self-driving car.

According to the publication, the Cupertino team exceeded $10 billion for the entire project. But it had to be canceled because it was not possible to create software and algorithms for a self-driving car.

The company was reportedly in talks with Elon Musk to acquire Tesla. However, in the usual calculation, they decided that it would be more profitable to make a small electric car than to buy a ready-made business.

It was planned that the Apple Car would not have a steering wheel. Instead, driving continued to be handled through Siri.

Mr. Ive and his design team drew up a concept for a car that would look like a European minivan, like the Fiat Multipla 600, with half a dozen windows and a curved roof. It has no steering wheel and is controlled using Apple’s virtual assistant Siri.
One day in the fall of 2015, Mr. Ive and Mr. Cook met at the project’s headquarters in Sunnyvale, California, to return to how the car might work. Two people sat in the seats.

The external voice actors read from the script, as Siri said as the men walked down the road to the imaginary car. Mr. Ive asked Siri what restaurant they passed, and the actor spoke the answer.

– New York Times

Apple was never able to find a suitable head for the Apple Car project, although there were four potential candidates. But over the years, the company cut the project several times.

Ultimately, Project Titan was canceled entirely. [9to5]