There is currently a lot of excitement around the prospect of an Apple car in the relatively near future. However, analysts, including the well-known Ming-Chi Kuo, have poured some cold water on the speculation.
Analysts Think Apple Lagging on Tech Key to Car Rollout
In a note published over the weekend seen by CNBC, Mr. Kuo wrote:
We believe that the current so-called Apple car concept stocks are only speculations by the market and do not involve actual Apple car suppliers. We also think that because EV/self-driving car technical specs are still evolving, it is too early to talk about the final specs of the Apple car.
Mr. Kuo described the market on the Apple car as “too bullish” as well. He said that the earlier he believes such a vehicle could arrive is 2025, but think we may have to wait until 2028 or beyond and that the company lags in crucial areas.
If Apple car wants to succeed in the future, the key success factor is big data/AI, not hardware. One of our biggest concerns about Apple Research 27 December 2020 2 Apple car is that when Apple car is launched, the current self-driving car brands will have accumulated at least five years of big data and be conducive to deep learning/AI. How does Apple, a latecomer, overcome this lagging gap?
Mr. Kuo is not the only skeptical analyst. In a note last week, Jim Suva of Citi wrote:
Apple conducts R&D in many areas, and while we are not surprised to hear the media once again discuss Project Titan for autos, we are very skeptical that Apple will actually produce a car, as auto sector profitability is much lower.