Apple worked with Chinese company BYD on batteries for its car project

The Apple Car project was canceled before it even saw the light of day, and although Apple has never publicly acknowledged the project, we know a lot of details about it thanks to various insiders. Now, a new report has revealed details of a partnership between Apple and BYD to work on batteries for the so-called Apple Car.

Apple wanted to use BYD batteries in its electric car

As reported by Bloomberg On Wednesday, Apple worked closely with Chinese automaker BYD. Both companies reportedly reached an agreement around 2017 to build batteries using lithium iron phosphate (LFP) cells. The technology would significantly increase the car's autonomy and was also considered safer than traditional electric vehicle batteries.

Although BYD has its own electric vehicles, the battery built in collaboration with Apple would be designed exclusively for the Apple Car. Apple selected engineers specializing in advanced battery packs and thermal management to work on the project, while BYD contributed manufacturing expertise and advances in the use of LFP batteries.

When Apple was looking for partners for the car project, BYD reportedly approached the company to show off an early version of its “blade” battery. Apple executives were reportedly surprised by the safety and capacity of the battery and ultimately decided to work with the Chinese company. The blade battery is now one of the selling points of BYD cars.

Although Apple has worked with BYD for years, Apple has reportedly backed out of the partnership and considered systems from other companies.

More about the Apple Car project

Since the Apple Car project has now been canceled, many people involved in the project have now revealed details about it. The idea of ​​building a car reportedly came to Apple in 2014, and the company was in talks with many automakers such as Mercedez-Benz, Volkswagen and even Tesla to seek their help.

The project has undergone many variations since its initial concept. Because of the challenges of building a fully autonomous car like Apple executives wanted, the company later reconsidered the project with a less ambitious approach. However, Apple found building a car too complicated and the company ended the Titan project.

Estimates suggest that the car project cost Apple more than $1 billion a year, while the company planned to sell its car for around $120,000.