Apple plans to release a fully autonomous car with no steering wheel or pedals in 2025

Bloomberg reports that Apple continues work on its own car and aims to build a fully autonomous vehicle. The company has "reoriented" the project toward fully autonomous cars, something other automakers have not managed to achieve. 

Work on the Apple Car began back in 2014, but the project has undergone many transformations since then. At one point, rumors said Apple had abandoned its plans to build a full-fledged car and would instead focus on software, but news began to surface again in 2020. Now it is clear that the company does intend to release its own car after all.

As Bloomberg explains, Apple has been working on two paths for vehicles: one with limited self-driving capabilities, and a second with full self-driving functionality that requires no human intervention. From now on, the company will follow the second path under the leadership of Kevin Lynch, who joined the project in early 2021. Apple has reached an "important milestone" in developing an automated driving system and has completed the main work on the chip that will power the first car. 

Apple's automotive chip is the most advanced component developed in-house by the company. It consists mainly of neural processors capable of handling the artificial intelligence required for autonomous driving. The chip's capabilities mean it will overheat and will likely require a complex cooling system.

The company hopes to develop a car that spares customers the fatigue of driving on long trips. But building a real car is something a newcomer to the auto industry, such as Apple, will need partnerships for. The company has discussed deals with several manufacturers and considered producing the car in the United States.

Apple wants to build a car with no steering wheel or pedals, with an interior designed for control without the use of hands. Bloomberg reports that the company considered a design similar to Canoo's Lifestyle vehicle, in which passengers sit along the sides of the car, facing each other.

The company is still discussing adding a steering wheel, which may be needed so people can take over control in an emergency. A tablet similar to an iPad, with which passengers can interact, may sit at the center of the car. 

Apple wants its car to be safer than those produced by Waymo and Tesla, with redundancy and fault tolerance to avoid failures. The car will be electric, so Apple is discussing charging compatible with the combined charging system so that car owners can use the global network of chargers.

Using Lexus SUVs equipped with LiDAR and other hardware, Apple has been testing its autonomous driving system. Bloomberg reports that Apple will test a new processor it developed for these vehicles, along with new self-driving sensors.

According to rumors, Apple intends to release its self-driving car in four years, which would allow a debut around 2025. Whether the company can meet this goal will depend on whether Apple can develop a full self-driving system. If it fails to reach its goals, it may delay the launch or sell a less technologically advanced car. The timeline is tight, so the company is increasing its headcount.

Apple is actively recruiting engineers to test and develop safety features. One of the company's recent job listings says: "The Special Projects Group is looking for an experienced mechanical engineer to lead the development of mechanical systems with safety-critical functions. You will use your passion for solving puzzles to help design safety systems and lead testing and countermeasures for these systems."

In recent weeks Apple has also approached a climate systems specialist from Volvo Car, a manager from Daimler Trucks, battery system engineers from Karma Automotive LLC and other carmakers, a sensor engineer from Cruise LLC, a General Motors unit, automotive safety engineers from companies such as Joyson Safety Systems, and many other engineers from Tesla, according to LinkedIn information and the publication's sources.

Apple declined to comment. The new priority may help a project that has faced setbacks, including departing executives and partners unwilling to take on such bold decisions. The company could match or surpass existing carmakers that only plan to offer full or near-full autonomy.

However, fully autonomous driving involves many challenges, including hard-to-predict traffic and weather issues such as snow. It would not be surprising if Apple had to delay the car or, at the very least, ask drivers to take over responsibility under certain conditions.

Tesla, although a leader in the electric vehicle market, is probably still far from offering fully autonomous cars. Alphabet's Waymo has suffered a number of setbacks in its efforts to develop this technology. And last year, Uber Technologies agreed to sell its self-driving unit.