“We need to take new initiatives,” he said according to the WSJ. “[We need to] work with companies that are knowledgeable, with good experience, through partnership and collaboration.”
In other words, Nissan is ready to do it if Apple wants to sign a partnership with the Japanese company, though, at this point, it’s still not known if the two are discussing an EV collaboration or not.
But analyst Mio Kato told the cited source that Nissan is “the most likely candidate to be in serious discussions with Apple,” and of course, it also has the required capacity to handle such a huge project like an Apple Car.
On the other hand, however, Nissan’s CEO discussing such details publicly isn’t necessarily an approach that Apple is a big fan of.
Sources close to the matter said earlier this month that Apple’s leadership team was upset with how Hyundai spilled the beans on the Apple Car talks, and this was one of the reasons the talks between the two were eventually suspended. Apple is known as a company that keeps every little detail secret, so Hyundai commenting on the topic and pretty much confirming an Apple Car is coming was something that didn’t sit well with the iPhone maker.
At this point, Apple is said to be exploring several options for the production of the Apple Car, including a partnership with other smaller companies to handle the whole thing. A decision is expected to be made this spring.
