Amid Apple Car Rumors, Volkswagen CEO Welcomes Competitors to Accelerate Transformation of the Auto Industry

Volkswagen Group CEO Herbert Diess has responded to recent rumors of an Apple car, saying that the major German automaker embraces competition and anticipates the innovations of newcomers in the industry.

Apple car wheel icon feature teal

In a response to a comment on LinkedIn asking about Apple's "Project Titan," first spotted by iMore, Diess said:

We look forward to new competitors who will certainly accelerate the change in our industry again and bring new skills. The incredible valuation [of new competitors] and their practically unlimited access to resources instills a lot of respect in us. A real challenge - dimensions larger than that within our industry (e.g. Toyota Motor Corporation).

I already said: The most valuable company in the world will again be a mobility company - it can be Tesla, Apple, or Volkswagen AG.

On Monday, Reuters reported that Apple is aiming to begin production on a self-driving vehicle starting in 2024. Apple is reportedly developing a "next level" battery system that could "radically" reduce cost and increase vehicle range, and plans to make use of multiple LiDAR scanners for self-driving functions.

The Volkswagen Group has been the world's largest automaker by sales since 2016 and sells vehicles under the Audi, Bentley, Bugatti, Lamborghini, Porsche, SEAT Škoda, MAN, Scania, and Volkswagen brands. Diess's comments illustrate how far recent rumors of an Apple car have pervaded the auto industry. Following the Reuters report, Apple's stock climbed by around four percent, while Tesla's fell by around six percent.

Yesterday, Tesla CEO Elon Musk weighed into discussions surrounding an Apple car, saying that he once reached out to Apple CEO Tim Cook about the possibility of Apple acquiring Tesla, but Cook "refused to take the meeting."

If and when Apple does begin selling a passenger vehicle, Tesla, Volkswagen, and Apple will likely be direct competitors, with all three companies heavily investing in self-driving technology.

Related Roundup: Apple Car

Top Rated Comments

0815 Avatar
42 months ago
while the diesel-gate created a lot of mistrust, I like the 'new' VW and see it as one of the few traditional automakers that goes the right direction with the ID line .... love my Tesla, but can't wait until all the electric VWs are available in the US. Competition is good and needed.

I could see Apple entering a partnership (or just purchase it) with one of the new Electric startups. Lucid would be great. They already have the Lucid Air ... the SUV will then be the Lucid Max and the high-end edition of it the Lucid Pro Max ...
Score: 19 Votes (Like | Disagree)
4jasontv Avatar
42 months ago

Existing car companies may not be good at tech
What an understatement.
Score: 10 Votes (Like | Disagree)
McScooby Avatar
42 months ago
Fool!:oops: Does he not realise this is what the Swiss Watch Industry said in 2014!;)?
Score: 6 Votes (Like | Disagree)
applicious84 Avatar
42 months ago

Bentley, Bugatti, Lamborghini, Porsche
I'd like to add an Apple car to my garage of VWs ^
Score: 5 Votes (Like | Disagree)
ipedro Avatar
42 months ago
I think that most of tech journalism is looking at this wrong. I don’t believe that Apple will be selling a car. They’ll be selling a service.

The future of transportation is already happening right now with car ownership dropping amongst the youngest generations. As more and more of the world’s population consolidates into cities — now more than half of every human on Earth lives in a city, trending towards 3/4 — it makes less sense to own a car and instead to have one on demand. We’re moving to shared transportation, whether it be public transit, car hailing apps or the sharing model where you can pick up a nearby car for personal use for a longer period.

In that context, having a long lasting battery that can run for a day with sometimes no charging times between users, makes a lot of sense.

In the near future, you’ll use your Apple Watch to summon an Apple Pod to where you are, with nobody inside. It’ll take you to where you need to go and then pick up the next passenger.

This was Uber’s ultimate goal but as of now admitted to have failed. Uber is a software company with a good idea. They underestimated the complexity of putting together a car and will rely on the private car with driver model that they started with. Apple knows how to build things. Apple is both a top tier innovative hardware company and a top tier innovative software company melded together. I trust Apple can pull this off.
Score: 5 Votes (Like | Disagree)
mozumder Avatar
42 months ago
Not sure why Apple needs to get into the car business, when there's a million other tech items to develop with obvious Apple implications. In particular, HomeKit and HealthKit devices. Or a printer. Or camera. Or servers/networking equipment. Hell, why not homes or airplanes or handbags or anything in the universe of products.

Apple needs to do a lot better than what companies like Toyota will eventually produce, which is an extremely high bar.
Score: 5 Votes (Like | Disagree)

Popular Stories

iPhone 16 Camera Lozenge 2 Perspective Gray

Five Key Upgrades Coming to iPhone 16

Friday March 15, 2024 1:45 pm PDT by
The iPhone is Apple's top-selling product, and it gets an update every year. In 2024, we're expecting the iPhone 16 and iPhone 16 Pro lineup, with an arguably more interesting feature set than we got with the iPhone 15 and iPhone 15 Pro. Subscribe to the MacRumors YouTube channel for more videos. Capture Button All four iPhone 16 models are set to get a whole new button, which will be...
airpods 3 orange

Two New AirPods 4 Models Expected to Launch in September or October

Sunday March 17, 2024 7:56 am PDT by
Apple suppliers will begin production of two new fourth-generation AirPods models in May, according to Bloomberg's Mark Gurman. Based on this production timeframe, he expects the headphones to be released in September or October. Gurman expects both fourth-generation AirPods models to feature a new design with better fit, improved sound quality, and an updated charging case with a USB-C...
When To Expect New iPads Feature 1

Apple to Announce New iPads on March 26, Rumors Claim

Monday March 18, 2024 4:02 am PDT by
Apple is widely expected to release new iPad Air and OLED iPad Pro models in the next few weeks. According to new rumors coming out of Asia, the company will announce its new iPads on Tuesday, March 26. Chinese leaker Instant Digital on Weibo this morning 日发布%23">claimed that the date will see some sort of announcement from Apple related to new iPads, but stopped short of calling it an...
iphone se 4 modified flag edges

iPhone SE 4 Expected to Depreciate Heavily

Tuesday March 12, 2024 9:04 am PDT by
Resale value trends suggest the iPhone SE 4 may not hold its value as well as Apple's flagship models, according to SellCell. According to the report, Apple's iPhone SE models have historically depreciated much more rapidly than the company's more premium offerings. The third-generation iPhone SE, which launched in March 2022, experienced a significant drop in resale value, losing 42.6%...
iOS 17 Passkey With Apple ACCOUNT Feature

'Apple ID' Expected to Change to 'Apple Account' Starting With iOS 18

Sunday March 17, 2024 7:13 am PDT by
MacRumors was first to report that Apple was planning to rebrand "Apple ID" to "Apple Account" across its software platforms and websites like iCloud.com as early as this year, and now Bloomberg's Mark Gurman has corroborated this change. A mockup of the new Apple Account branding In his Power On newsletter today, Gurman said the new "Apple Account" branding will start to be used later this...
General iOS 17 Feature Orange Purple

iOS 17.4.1 Update for iPhone is Imminent

Monday March 18, 2024 5:27 am PDT by
iOS 17.4.1 and iPadOS 17.4.1 should be released within the next few days, with a build number of 21E235, according to a source with a proven track record. MacRumors previously reported that Apple was internally testing iOS 17.4.1. As a minor update for the iPhone, it will likely address software bugs and/or security vulnerabilities. It is unclear if the update will include any other changes. ...