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Apple Hires BMW i3 And i8 Developer
Apple has hired Ulrich Kranz, former BMW vice president and co-founder of EV start-up Canoo, to work on Apple’s apparently revived electric car project, Bloomberg reports, calling Kranz one of Apple’s most significant automotive hires.
The Apple car project has been on and off for years.
Before he founded Canoo, an EV platform developer that signed a supply deal with Hyundai, Kranz spent 30 years at BMW, most recently running development of the i3 and i8.
According to Bloomberg Kranz left Canoo two months ago and started at Apple “in recent weeks.”
Apple’s EV development program is called Project Titan and it has been reported that Apple is about to sign a joint-venture agreement with EV powertrain maker LG Electronics. LG Electronics would build Project Titan prototypes to measure consumer interest.
It’s unclear what role Kranz is going to play at Apple but the report says he’s going to report to Project Titan boss Doug Field, who previously oversaw Tesla Model 3 development and production.
