While fans are waiting for the Apple car, the little known Faraday Future unveiled its FFZero1 concept car that looks like a futuristic Batmobile at the CES. The single-seater FFZero1 is actually a race-car. Powered by a 1,000-horsepower engine, it goes from zero to 60mph in less than three seconds, and has a top speed of 200mph. The mysterious Faraday Future has been called a true rival to Tesla.
FFZero1 a variant of Apple car?
During his speech, Faraday’s SVP for R&D Nick Sampson recalled how the iPhone transformed the way people communicate and live their lives. Faraday had the same transformative vision. The California-based company has the backing of Chinese Internet billionaire Jia Yueting of the online entertainment company LeTV. Faraday boasts of a deep pool of talent. It has 720 employees worldwide, including former employees of BMW, Tesla, Audi, and Lotus.
Some experts believe that the FFZero1 could be an Apple car hiding in plain sight. Marco della Cava of USA Today points out that there are strong reasons to believe that Faraday Future may have the backing of Apple. The Cupertino company has a history of keeping its future products under wraps. But details have leaked out about almost every product, including the Apple Watch, thanks to the vast supply chain.
Recently, when asked about Apple car, Tim Cook said the iPhone maker was even more secretive than CIA. How can the company maintain secrecy around a product as big as a car if it can’t do so for the next iPhone? Faraday says it could execute much rapidly than a traditional automobile company because of an underlying modular architecture that would streamline production capabilities while reducing the R&D and manufacturing time.
A futuristic and transformative company that doesn’t have a CEO?
Faraday Future plans to invest more than $1 billion to build a large manufacturing facility in North Las Vegas. What’s more, Faraday PR managed to create buzz around its product successfully. A little-known company that pulled off PR so well, is investing over $1 billion in manufacturing, and plans to bring a futuristic car in a few years hasn’t even named a CEO. That’s surprising, says Marco della Cava.
During one-on-one interviews, Faraday executives were noticeably unspecific. They were using big words like “disruptive” “transform” “connectivity” and “redefining the very nature of mobility.” But the execs did not offer a clear roadmap. Everything from an odd Batmobile prototype to the lack of a CEO point to two things: either the company was led by extremely optimistic billionaires or “it’s Apple hiding in plain sight,” said Marco della Cava.
Who knows whether FFZero1 could be a version of the imminent Apple car? But Tim Cook was probably serious when he told CBS 60 Minutes that Apple was more secretive than the CIA.
