Grafissimo/Getty, Apple, Tyler Le/BI
- Apple is ending its electric car project about a decade in the making, sources told Bloomberg.
- Executives at the tech company broke the news to nearly 2,000 employees on the EV team.
- Some will be moved to different roles focused on generative AI. Others may get laid off.
Apple is reportedly abandoning a decadelong effort to manufacture its own electric car, sources familiar with the matter told Bloomberg.
As of Tuesday, Apple executives Jeff Williams and Kevin Lynch internally broke the news to nearly 2,000 employees working on the EV team known as the Special Projects Group, Bloomberg reported.
Many of the employees involved in the project will be moved to the company's artificial intelligence division to focus on its generative AI projects, Bloomberg reported.
Several hundred hardware engineers and car designers who were part of the team may be able to apply for other open roles at Apple, per Bloomberg. An undisclosed number of layoffs is imminent.
Apple's decision to sunset its EV project comes after the tech company announced it was pushing back the car's launch date to 2028 amid production challenges.
Last month, Apple reportedly pivoted away from its intended goal of building a fully autonomous vehicle and more toward a less ambitious design with limited self-driving features. The revamped EV — categorized as Level 2+ autonomy — would've self-parked, stayed centered on a lane, and allowed drivers to take their hands off the wheel.
Before the project ended, Apple executives reportedly expressed concerns about the car's profit margins, according to Bloomberg. The company was spending hundreds of millions of dollars each year on the project and planned on pricing the vehicle at around $100,000.
EV companies have struggled in recent months as a wave of early adopters dries up, leading to slowing sales growth as vehicle prices remain stubbornly high.
Last week, EV manufacturer Rivian reported a loss of $5.4 billion in revenue despite delivering twice as many EVs in 2023 compared to the previous year, according to its latest Q4 earnings.
Apple didn't immediately respond to a request for comment from Business Insider.
Do you work on Apple's EV team and have a story to share? Contact BI reporter Aaron Mok at amok@insider.com.