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Arizona Vehicle Testing Site Rumored to Be Used by Apple Purchased for $125 Million

wigby said:
According to you, the autonomous car market is all wrapped up but I'm still trying to summon a single self driving car to come pick me up. What am I doing wrong here?
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I got my chips on; Apple won't build a car but license the tech - and - in long run a service you subscribe to that autonomously comes to take you to work etc and leaves.
No garage/parking space/insurance

We got TuSimple semis based out of here that drive loads between Houston & Phoenix, unmanned, right now.
 
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I7guy said:
In my mind, let's say the rumors are spot on and Apple is looking to develop either 1) an apple car or 2) have a peice of it's ecosystem embedded in the car...I cannot envision what that would bring to the table above and beyond a Tesla. I'm sure it will be a premium product with a price tag to match however above and beyond this?
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So IF the rumor that Apple bought this set track, then it must be #1 from your list - why would you need a 4mil test track for an embedded piece of ecosystem?
These test track have historically served for mechanical evaluation, sure don't need one for autonomous driving ...
 
Amazing that Chrysler had so many overheating problems back in the day with those proving grounds. /s

I don’t think it is necessary for Apple to own it’s own facility. There are facilities across the country that corporations such as Apple / etc do reserve for testing vehicles in all kinds of weather. One such facility is in northern Minnesota and often sees various brands do cold weather testing during the winter months. Some wet weather testing in fall & spring as well.
 
tongxinshe said:
Apple has been wasting time on this car project. It is too many years behind Google and Baidu. By the time Apple comes up with something usable, the market would have been fully taken up. When Apple is not the creator of a market, it never made meaningful splash. In another word, Apple is never good at competing in a field others created.
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That is exactly what they were saying about Apples entry into the smartphone business
 
tongxinshe said:
Apple has been wasting time on this car project. It is too many years behind Google and Baidu. By the time Apple comes up with something usable, the market would have been fully taken up. When Apple is not the creator of a market, it never made meaningful splash. In another word, Apple is never good at competing in a field others created.
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It’s you, Steve, isn’t it? ;)
 
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Interesting to see that a search in Maps for the postal address (33040 N 203rd Ave, Wittmann, AZ) gives this place:

1630707146822.png


Whereas searching for the Zip code (85361) gives this location….

1630707117170.png
 
tongxinshe said:
Apple has been wasting time on this car project. It is too many years behind Google and Baidu. By the time Apple comes up with something usable, the market would have been fully taken up. When Apple is not the creator of a market, it never made meaningful splash. In another word, Apple is never good at competing in a field others created.
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Personal computer, digital music player, smart phone, tablet, Bluetooth headsets… these were all existing products by Fortune 100 companies that Apple swooped in, made them “just work”, and completely ate their lunch.

And to top it all off, if Apple is shooting for a fully autonomous vehicle, no one was truly created that yet! They have plenty of time to come in and make it “just work” and be the winner of the AV war.
 
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The purchase could mean anything. It might mean they realized that $125M for a lot of acreage near a fast-growing city is a deal. And they will plow the track up and turn the place into a retirement home community called "The Villages West" and then sell the homes and lots for Billions.
 
jerryk said:
The purchase could mean anything. It might mean they realized that $125M for a lot of acreage near a fast-growing city is a deal. And they will plow the track up and turn the place into a retirement home community called "The Villages West" and then sell the homes and lots for Billions.
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They could have bought the land jusssssssssssssst to the left of photo for a whole lot less if they wanted to do that. :D
 
"Everyone has this completely wrong, they are focusing on making the most awesome Scalextric track ever"
Jon Prosser
 
Autonomus car full implementation will not be a reality until we update the highway infrastructure. Things like lights, signs, will need to talk directly to the car. What will happen before everyone, business use. More in the wheel house of pizza delivery and point to point trucking, and buses. A controlled environment by a fixed route or limited location. Our needs are the wild west of autonomus travel.
 
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npmacuser5 said:
Autonomus car full implementation will not be a reality until we update the highway infrastructure. Things like lights, signs, will need to talk directly to the car. What will happen before everyone, business use. More in the wheel house of pizza delivery and point to point trucking, and buses. A controlled environment by a fixed route or limited location. Our needs are the wild west of autonomus travel.
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I would agree with this. The infrastructure needs to change before we see fully autonomous vehicles. What they have now is a start and it's so early in its infancy. Be really interesting to see what this looks like in 20 years time but I think technology will be embedded in the fabric of society where it feels more integrated in the spaces we navigate, whether that be on foot or a vehicle. I guess what I'm trying to say is that technology will just feel more invisible and we'll just interact with it as a service layer.

That probably doesn't make any sense but I know what I mean in my head, I just can't articulate it very well.
 
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tongxinshe said:
Apple has been wasting time on this car project. It is too many years behind Google and Baidu. By the time Apple comes up with something usable, the market would have been fully taken up. When Apple is not the creator of a market, it never made meaningful splash. In another word, Apple is never good at competing in a field others created.
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Apple wasn’t first to market with the personal computer.
Apple wasn’t first to market with the MP3 player.
Apple wasn’t first to market with the smartphone.
Apple wasn’t first to market with the smartwatch.
Apple wasn’t first to market with Bluetooth in-ear earphones.
Apple wasn’t first to market with item trackers.


They seem to have done ok.
 
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tongxinshe said:
Apple has been wasting time on this car project. It is too many years behind Google and Baidu. By the time Apple comes up with something usable, the market would have been fully taken up. When Apple is not the creator of a market, it never made meaningful splash. In another word, Apple is never good at competing in a field others created.
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You mean, like the cell phone?
 
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nt5672 said:
With Apple's software bug count, rate, and longevity I can't see any rational human wanting an Apple car or to drive one that uses Apple AI.

Imagine Siri in control of your car. OMG, just say it ain't so!
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Apple might never dominate in marketshare but we all know they could announce a $100k Apple Car tomorrow and take pre-orders or deposits from at least 1 million loyal Apple customers. That is something that no other car or tech company could come close to pulling off.
 
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tongxinshe said:
Apple has been wasting time on this car project. It is too many years behind Google and Baidu. By the time Apple comes up with something usable, the market would have been fully taken up. When Apple is not the creator of a market, it never made meaningful splash. In another word, Apple is never good at competing in a field others created.
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Yah. Like the cellphone :)
 
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tongxinshe said:
Apple has been wasting time on this car project. It is too many years behind Google and Baidu. By the time Apple comes up with something usable, the market would have been fully taken up. When Apple is not the creator of a market, it never made meaningful splash. In another word, Apple is never good at competing in a field others created.
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Huh?

that’s what everyone said about Tesla. Toyota and Ford would eat them alive.
Yeah that still hasn’t happened. Lol

Apple isn’t looking to sell millions of cars. If they do 100k cars a year that’s probably their target. I’m assuming this car will cost around $70,000 and 3 year AppleCare+ likely around $4-5k. Just hope the tech guys know how to rotate the tires.
 
Electric motors controlled by Apple software, connected to iCloud, using LIDAR for safety, with a new type of Battery tech, with FaceID as a key to enter and start the engine, with a spatial audio sound system, HUD with directions, all controlled by M-series chips.

Could be interesting, as long as I can opt-out of the insane so-called ‘self-driving’ part.
 
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