Apple is reportedly in talks to make a strategic investment in McLaren, or purchase the firm outright, according to a new report from the Financial Times. To be clear, the company is not buying this McLaren.
If you"re not familiar with McLaren, it"s a British company that makes race cars and supercars. It would seem that an investment from Apple would further the company"s goals to make its own car, which have been rumored since 2015.
The Financial Times reports (via Jalopnik):
The California technology group, which has been working on a self-driving electric vehicle for more than two years, is considering a full takeover of McLaren or a strategic investment, according to three people briefed on the negotiations who said talks started several months ago.
Ten days ago, we reported that Apple"s car ambitions had hit a speed bump. The company had reportedly laid off dozens of employees and closed down portions of the project. Of course, it"s entirely possible that the firm downsized its internal research and development because it had shifted its focus to making an acquisition, such as McLaren.
McLaren"s Applied Technologies Group could be what Apple is after. While it sells electronics "to everyone from Formula One to NASCAR", it"s also done work on data center optimization and partnered with GlaxoSmithKline to enter the healthcare market.
Of course, these are all rumors for now. We won"t know more until Apple actually purchases or invests in McLaren. When that happens, we"ll keep you in the (Infinite) loop.
Source: Financial Times via Jalopnik | Image via McLaren