Apple Secretly Developed Long-Range EV Battery Tech with China's BYD
Apple secretly collaborated with Chinese automaker BYD to develop long-range electric vehicle battery technology as part of its now-nixed Apple Car project, according to Bloomberg.
Beginning around 2017, the partnership focused on creating a battery system using lithium iron phosphate (LFP) cells. The joint effort aimed to produce batteries with longer range and improved safety compared to typical EV batteries of the time. Apple reportedly brought expertise in advanced battery packs and heat management, while BYD contributed manufacturing know-how and advancements in LFP cell technology.
The collaboration was part of Apple's since-canceled car project, which the company invested approximately $1 billion per year in over the past decade. Although Apple doesn't own the technology used in BYD's current Blade batteries, the partnership reportedly influenced the development of BYD's battery systems.
The project is said to have been led by Alexander Hitzinger on Apple's side, with a team of about 50 battery engineers overseen by Mujeeb Ijaz. Michael He, vice president of BYD's battery business, led the efforts for the Chinese company.
Despite the years of collaboration, Apple eventually moved away from the partnership and explored systems from other battery makers. Apple ultimately canceled its car project in February 2024 after executives decided it was not a viable project.
While Apple's car ambitions didn't materialize, the battery development work reportedly contributed to other areas of the company's technology portfolio, including the Vision Pro headset and Neural Engine AI processor. Read our Apple Car roundup for more details about the canceled project.
Popular Stories
Apple is set to release iOS 18.2 next month, bringing the second round of Apple Intelligence features to iPhone 15 Pro and iPhone 16 models. This update brings several major advancements to Apple's AI integration, including completely new image generation tools and a range of Visual Intelligence-based enhancements. There are a handful of new non-AI related feature controls incoming as well....
Apple's camera module supplier for the upcoming iPhone SE 4 is set to begin mass production of the components in December, according to a new report coming out of Korea.
Economic newspaper Ajunews reports that LG Innotek will supply the front camera module for the budget-friendly fourth-generation device. Final tests are now said to be underway, with mass production of the module following...
Wednesday November 13, 2024 11:01 am PST by
Juli CloverA trio of Apple customers this month filed a class action lawsuit against Apple, accusing the Cupertino company of violating California consumer protection laws and false advertising for continuing to sell AirPods Pro models that had ongoing issues with crackling or static sounds.
A few months after the AirPods Pro came out in October 2019, buyers began to complain about crackling, rattling, ...
Apple today released firmware updates for both AirPods 4 models (version number 7B20) and the AirPods Pro 2 with both Lightning and USB-C charging cases (version number 7B21). All of these AirPods models were previously on firmware version 7B19.
It is not immediately clear what new features or changes are included in firmware versions 7B20 and 7B21, but we will update this story if we find...
The M4 MacBook Pro models feature quantum dot display technology, according to display analyst Ross Young. Apple used a quantum dot film instead of a red KSF phosphor film, a change that provides more vibrant, accurate color results.
Young says that Apple has opted for KSF for prior MacBook Pro models because it doesn't use toxic element cadmium (typical for quantum dot) and is more...
Wednesday November 13, 2024 11:59 am PST by
Juli CloverApple last week replaced the M3 Max MacBook Pro with the new M4 Max MacBook Pro, and we picked up one of the new high-end MacBook Pro machines to see how it compares to the prior model with both benchmarks and real-world tests.
We tested an M4 Max with a 16-core CPU, 40-core GPU, and 48GB RAM against an M3 Max MacBook Pro with similar specs. The two machines look similar, but the display on...
Apple today announced the launch of major updates for its Final Cut Pro video editing software designed for Macs and iPads. Final Cut Pro has been version 10 since 2011, but after 13 years, Apple is finally ready to debut Final Cut Pro 11.
Apple first teased a new version of Final Cut Pro when introducing the new M4 Macs in October, and now the updated software is available for download with ...
