Apple smart car delayed! Reduced Self Driving capabilities

Apple has delayed the debut of its long-awaited self-driving car by about a year until 2026, according to Bloomberg. Bloomberg's Marc Garman said Apple is not only postponing its car project, internally dubbed "Titan," but also scaled back the self-driving capabilities of its vehicles to adapt to reality, according to a source familiar with the company's plans.

According to previous rumours, Apple was planning to introduce its first vehicles with "Level 5" autonomy. This vehicle can carry people without a driver. No steering wheel or pedals are required. But following recent revelations, according to Bloomberg, Apple recently admitted that it can't do that with the technology available. Apple's upcoming car will therefore include a steering wheel, accelerator pedal and brake pedal, with a less ambitious design. Apple's cars are still fully self-driving capable, but only on highways.

Apple is currently working on cars that allow drivers to multitask on the go. Timely reminders to switch to manual control when watching movies or playing games, when you go out on the city streets or encounter bad weather. This feature may roll out in North America first before being improved and expanded over time.

Apple Car expected price in India

Reportedly, Apple originally planned to charge more than $120,000 for the self-driving car. With a recent planned overhaul, Apple appears to be selling this car to consumers for less than $100,000. Rumours also suggest that Apple hasn't decided on the design, which shouldn't come as a surprise. Apple aims to finalize the design in 2023 and determine the features of the car, which is currently in the "pre-prototype" stage, by the end of 2024. After that, extensive testing will begin around 2025. The report implies that "the plan is to produce something like a traditional car with a driver's seat," but the exact appearance of the vehicle is still unknown.

Apple CarPlay shed light on the Apple car UI

The new generation CarPlay experience will be suitable to give content across multiple displays within a vehicle, and deeper integration with a vehicle's control. For example, the radio, acclimate climate controls, and more will be accessible directly within CarPlay. Apple said the new interpretation of CarPlay will also seamlessly display a vehicle's speedometer, fuel levels, temperature, and more on the instrument cluster.

Apple also said that the support for the new CarPlay will be announced in late 2023. Many companies like Honda, Land Rover, Audi, Porsche and more will support this feature. More information related to the next-gen CarPlay will be shared by Apple in future.