Apple has lost "several" top managers from its internal Apple Car project, codenamed "Project Titan," causing a potential setback to the launch of the self-driving car, according to a new report from Bloomberg.
From the report:
Apple Inc. has lost multiple top managers of its self-driving car team in recent months, a sign of attrition at the division involved in what could become an important future product.
In recent days, Dave Scott, who led teams working on robotics related to the car, left to become the chief executive officer at Hyperfine, a health care company developing next-generation MRI systems. Before Scott’s departure, Jaime Waydo, who led autonomous car safety and regulation teams, departed to become the chief technology officer at Cavnue, a startup focused on the safety of autonomous cars on public roads.
In February, Benjamin Lyon, who helped create Apple’s original car team several years ago and was key in the future project’s development, left to become the chief engineer at Astra, a company developing technology for sending satellites to space.
Over the last few months, a flurry of reports have surfaced detailing potential specifics on an Apple Car. Bloomberg has previously reported that the self-driving vehicle is still in early development and is still at least five years away, while reliable Apple analyst Ming-Chi Kuo believes that the vehicle is unlikely to launch until 2025 at the earliest.
Despite the recent departure of some top-level managers from the project, Apple has added notable executives to "Project Titan." In February, the Cupertino tech giant hired a former Porsche executive with experience in chassis design. You can learn more about the Apple Car and everything we know about it using our guide.
