Apple Shuts Few Elements Of Electric Self-Driving Car Project, Lays Off Workers

(RTTNews) - Apple Inc. (AAPL) has laid off several employees and also shut down some elements of its self-driving car project, known as Project Titan, according to media reports. Project Titan's overall head count remains essentially the same, the report specified.

Apple has never publicly acknowledged that it is working on a car, but people familiar with the matter have previously said the effort includes hundreds of employees including software and automotive experts, as well as autonomous-driving technology engineers.

The changes to Apple's secretive initiative, code-named Project Titan, were implemented by Bob Mansfield, a veteran Apple executive who took over the project in July, after the departure of his predecessor Steve Zadesky earlier this year.

Details on which Project Titan efforts were closed weren't available. Bloomberg reported in July that Apple had shifted to prioritize development of an autonomous-driving system. News of the layoffs was first reported by the New York Times.

Other technology based companies have also faced challenges in delivering on their autonomous driving ambitions.

Last month, Alphabet, the parent company of Google, has tested self-driving cars on the road for years, but its focus has been on designing the underlying software and systems to make that technology work. Tesla has a self-driving feature within its cars that has come under scrutiny in recent months after a fatal accident was connected to its use.

Separately, Uber Technologies Inc. plans to start picking up passengers in self-driving cars. Last month, Uber acquired Otto, which provided technology for driverless trucks, to bolster its efforts in the area.