Building cars is a very complex business. That’s why Fiat Chrysler Automobiles NV CEO Sergio Marchionne suggested Apple to partner with a well-established automaker. Ever since the rumors about Apple car started surfacing, many of the leading automakers have said Apple does not even have a fighting chance in the auto industry. Developing and manufacturing cars is much more complex than making smartphones. But the iPhone maker has a history of disrupting existing businesses with its revolutionary products.
Fiat Chrysler understands Apple’s “syntax”
Sergio Marchionne said at the Geneva International Motor Show that Apple should stay out of the auto industry. However, if the Cupertino-based tech giant still wants to venture into the automobile business, it would do well to partner with an established player given the complexity of car manufacturing.
Marchionne describes himself as an “Apple freak” and owns almost every product the tech company makes. The Fiat Chrysler CEO said he was keen to partner with Apple to build a car. He believes Fiat Chrysler is well-suited to be an partner in the Apple car project. Marchionne understands that the iPhone maker has its own “syntax” and that syntax is “worth more than our ability to build cars.” He is willing to work on Apple’s terms.
Automakers to make cars on contract basis
Joining forces with an established automaker would help Apple tackle most of the hurdles usually associated with the auto industry. In May last year, Marchionne had held meetings with Apple CEO Tim Cook and Tesla founder Elon Musk to discuss the possibility of future collaboration. Last month, Tim Cook said in an exclusive interview with Fortune that he envisioned a future where automakers would make “an automobile on a contract basis for someone else.”
According to the Wall Street Journal, Apple is working to release an electric car with autonomous driving capabilities in 2019. Since last year, the Cupertino company has hired more than a thousand automobile engineers and experts for its highly secretive Project Titan. The company has also purchased several properties in and around Sunnyvale to design and test its cars.
