The well-known and reliable analyst Ming-Chi Kuo has his say on the Apple Car: it will be made, but only thanks to the collaboration of the giants of the auto industry and at a decidedly premium price.
It's back to talk about Apple Car, the self-driving electric car that Apple has been designing for several years now but about which little or nothing is known. The well-known, and usually very reliable, analyst of TF Securities Ming-Chi Kuo has published a new report in which he returns to discuss the subject.
Remember that Kuo had denied rumors in December that the Apple Car, or iCar as someone calls it waiting for an official name, would come soon. Secondo Kuo, infatti, Apple non sarebbe in grado di produrre una vettura pronta per il mercato prima del 2025 perché non ha a disposizione una filiera completa di fornitori automotive, mentre come è noto non ha alcun problema con la filiera dell’elettronica. Nel suo ultimo report Ming-Chi Kuo sembra confermare una precedente indiscrezione secondo cui Apple sarebbe in trattativa con il gruppo automobilistico Hyundai-Kia, al quale verrebbe affidato il compito di costruire la meccanica e le batterie dell’auto elettrica. Nel gioco, secondo Kuo, ci sarebbe spazio anche per General Motors e per PSA, il gruppo automobilistico francese che si è appena fuso con l’italiana FCA per creare il gigante automotive Stellantis.
Apple Car su piattaforma E-GMP
Secondo Kuo l’auto elettrica di Apple potrebbe essere costruita sulla nuova piattaforma modulare, di tipo “skateboard“, E-GMP di Hyundai-Kia. However, since Apple is a player in the electronics industry and not the auto industry, it might need to approach General Motors and PSA as well. And it would have no problem doing so, since it basically has its hands free to buy components from anyone in the world.
In this view, Apple would be limited to making the car's interior, design and, of course, the car's electronics and software. It could also take care of the batteries, exploiting its decades-long contacts with Asian battery manufacturers that have long been supplying it with batteries for smartphones, tablets and notebooks.
The Apple Car will be very expensive
According to Kuo, Apple has already decided to position its iCar at the top of the electric car market, with a decidedly premium price and features.
Considering that today, and probably also in 2025 and beyond, electric cars already cost significantly more than equivalent diesel or gasoline models, it is presumable that the price of an eventual Apple Car will be very high indeed.