Apple Inc. has laid off 614 employees, after the cancellation of its ambitious electric car project, “Project Titan.” Documents filed with the state of California reveal the extent of the layoffs, marking a significant move for the tech giant. The decision to terminate the program came after years of speculation and internal deliberation within Apple.
While never officially confirmed by the company, Project Titan was reportedly in development for over a decade. However, Apple’s indecision and challenges in keeping pace with the evolving automotive industry led to the project’s demise in February.
The Worker Adjustment and Retraining Notification (WARN) program filings indicate that Apple sought to transition employees to other projects where possible. However, layoffs were inevitable, affecting workers across various locations associated with Project Titan.
The filings do not detail the specific roles of the departing employees but categorize them by location. Notably, a significant portion of the layoffs, approximately 371 employees, occurred at Apple’s Santa Clara office, recognized as the nerve center of Project Titan. Additional layoffs were reported at satellite offices linked to the automotive project.
Approximately 87 employees working on a confidential project related to in-house device screen production were also affected. This project was terminated in late March due to engineering and cost challenges.
The demise of Project Titan, launched in 2014, was a long-anticipated event within Apple, with insiders dubbing it “Project Titanic.” Over its development, the project’s objectives shifted from competing with Tesla to developing a fully autonomous vehicle akin to Google’s Waymo, with design inspirations from vintage vehicles like the 1950s Fiat Multipla.
Internal leadership changes and a lack of clear strategic direction plagued Project Titan, hindering its progress. Without full endorsement from top executives, the project struggled to gain traction, ultimately leading to its cancellation. Apple has reportedly redirected its focus towards artificial intelligence (AI) initiatives in the aftermath of Project Titan’s closure.
