Apple hired Ulrich Kranz, former vice president of BMW and co-founder of start-up EV Canoo, to work on its revived project to develop an electric car.
First reported by Bloomberg and since confirmed in several publications by Apple, Kranz’s appointment follows a wave of activity from the company’s recently reinvigorated Project Titan program.
More recently, it was reported that Apple was close to signing a joint venture agreement that would see powertrain giant LG Electronics build the first examples of its car as a pilot project to gauge consumer interest.
It’s unclear what role Kranz will play as the program develops, but he will report to Project Titan Director Doug Field, who previously oversaw the development and production of the Tesla Model 3 electric sedan.
Prior to founding Canoo (an American EV platform developer who recently signed a landmark supply agreement with the Hyundai Motor Group), Kranz spent 30 years at BMW, most recently leading the development of its key i3 and i8 models.
He also spent a brief period as CTO of beleaguered electric car startup Faraday Future.
According to Bloomberg, who cites sources inside Apple, Kranz left Canoo in April and took up his new post in California “in recent weeks.”
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Source: www.autocar.co.uk
This notice was published: 2021-06-11 09:15:48
