Apple Hires Lamborghini Veteran To Lead Its Car’s Design
Photo 227232752 © Alexey Novikov | Dreamstime.com
A is for Apple, and also for Automaker. The tech behemoth has had a wealth of experience with building consumer electronics, but not so much with cars. So, as it accelerates towards a rumored 2025 launch for its very own autonomous EV, the company has roped in a lineup of top talents to set its wheeled dreams into motion.
The latest to join Apple’s car team is Luigi Taraborrelli, who has been working with Italian luxury sports carmaker Lamborghini for two decades, as revealed by sources of Bloomberg’s Mark Gurman. Taraborrelli has served as Lamborghini’s chief of chassis and vehicle dynamics, and worked on models like the Urus, Huracan, and Aventador.
With his knowledge on chassis, handling, suspension, steering, and braking technologies, Taraborrelli will “help lead the design of Apple’s future vehicle,” shares Gurman. Presently, Apple’s car team is reportedly being helmed by Apple Watch and health software leader Kevin Lynch and John Giannandrea, its machine learning chief.
Besides Taraborrelli, the tech giant has already brought engineers and design veterans from Tesla, Mercedes-Benz, Porsche, Ford, McLaren, Aston Martin, Waymo, Rivian, and Volvo on board to work on the forthcoming car. Among the division are Desi Ujkashevic, Ford’s former car safety development lead; Stuart Bowers, who previously headed Tesla’s Autopilot team; and Ulrich Kranz, who previously spearheaded Canoo and the BMW EV team.
Apple is purportedly building an electric car that doesn’t have a steering wheel, making it a true self-driving vehicle—though it’s unclear if this will be the same model that will first make it to market. Clearly, there will be plenty of kinks to get out of the way; Tesla itself has run into all sorts of issues with its self-driving feature. The steering wheel, it seems, is the new home button—unnecessary, at least in Apple’s eyes. Something like this is likely to disrupt the entire automotive industry.
[via ArenaEV and Tom’s Guide, cover photo 227232752 © Alexey Novikov | Dreamstime.com]
