Submitted by Jon Reed on
What began early last week as an unconvincing rumor that Apple (NASDAQ: AAPL) is working on an automobile gathered steam and, by Friday, it seemed that something is definitely afoot.
After multiple sightings over the last several weeks of Apple minivans laden with cameras and other equipment, rumors began to fly that Apple was working on a self-driving vehicle. Then, last Monday, a report emerged that an anonymous Apple employee had emailed BusinessInsider that the company was working on
a project that would "give Tesla a run for its money." Then there was a report that Apple is actively trying to poach employees from Tesla. By Friday, The Wall Street Journal had done some digging and found that Apple has a top secret project named "Titan." Apple iPhone designer, Steve Zadesky (who, incidentally is a former Ford employee) is said to be leading the project, which apparently has its own facility away from the campus and has several hundred Apple employees working on it. London's Financial Times reported on Friday that Apple has hired former Mercedes head of R&D, Johann Jungwirth. Considering these developments, it certainly seems plausible that Apple is indeed working on an iCar of sorts.
Some other noteworthy items from last week:
In a note to investors obtained by AppleInsider, Piper Jaffray analyst, Gene Munster, said he believes an Apple TV refresh will be central to Apple's fall lineup. He expects the long awaited update will still be a set top box rather than a full fledged TV, and that it will have updated hardware and software and will integrate HomeKit. He also believes Apple is working on its own content service, something similar to Dish's Sling TV.On Friday the App Store changed its policy regarding cannabis related apps. Apps involving cannabis can now be downloaded in 23 states and Washington D.C. where medicinal marijuana is legal.
Newest iPhone FAQs
Tim Cook announced last Tuesday that Apple will purchase $850 million worth of energy from First Solar Inc. to power its new campus and its offices and stores throughout California for the next 25 years. The green energy will be collected by First Solar's California Flats Solar Project, a solar farm that will begin construction in mid 2015 and be completed by the end of 2016. According to Cook, purchasing the energy now at a fixed price will result in "very significant savings" for Apple.
Reuters reported last Tuesday that, thanks to "kill switches," which allow customers to turn off their iPhones remotely, thefts of the smartphones have dropped off dramatically in several cities. San Francisco and New York saw incidents fall by 40% and 25% respectively, while London saw a 50% decrease.
On Wednesday, the big four cell phone carriers came into full compliance with the CTIA Consumer Code for Wireless Service (see section 12), which was agreed upon in 2013. Verizon, AT&T, Sprint and T-Mobile can no longer refuse to unlock customers' devices once their service contracts are up, thus allowing them to keep their devices and switch carriers if they so wish. The carriers will also notify customers when their devices are eligible to be unlocked.