Apple Is Reportedly Tracking Down an 800,000 sq. ft. Test Facility for Autonomous Car
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Apple’s pursuit of a self-driving car is no secret to anyone. Unfortunately, not much else is known beyond that. Design, price, functionality, and all else are a mystery to anyone outside of Apple. However, we may soon get a glimpse of the vehicle, given that Apple has been on the hunt for testing facilities in the San Francisco Bay Area.
Last week, the Wall Street Journal spoke with Hudson Pacific Properties CEO ,Victor Coleman, about the search for autonomous testing facilities in Silicon Valley and the surrounding areas. During the call, Coleman revealed the following: “I haven’t even mentioned the 400,000 square feet that Google’s looking to take down and the 800,000 square feet that Apple’s looking to take down for their autonomous cars as well.”
For reference, Hudson Pacific Properties was founded in 2006, and is a company that has a portfolio of around 17 million square feet of land throughout Northern and Southern California.
This subtle hint at a new Apple Car facility revamped the rumors surrounding their car project, causing sources to guesstimate as to where the tech giant would possibly set up shop for testing their vehicle. By comparison, an 800,000 square foot space would be approximately a third of the size of the new Apple campus. So it is no small endeavor. However, 9to5Mac did note that the space would still be smaller than your typical car factory.
And the hiring for Apple’s car project steadily continues. Most recently, Apple hired on top ex-Tesla exec Chris Porritt to their team, and likely for Project Titan given his extensive automobile background. Rumor has it that Apple continues to hire for their car-related endeavors despite the fact that little is known about their car project. The Wall Street Journal reported that, as of last year, 600 employees were already on board for Project Titan.
Currently, a number of analysts are predicting that Apple won’t have anything ready before 2020. But only time will tell.
Are you planning on taking home an Apple Car in the distant future? Let us know in the comments below.
