VW chief executive says Apple car launch will hasten growth of electric vehicle industry

Volkswagen’s chief executive said Apple’s planned entry into the car market will hasten the growth of the electric vehicle industry.

“We look forward to new competitors who will certainly accelerate the change in our industry ... and bring new skills,” Mr Diess said in a post on LinkedIn.

“The unbelievable rating and, thus, the practically unlimited access to resources instil a lot of respect in us [as the industry].”

Mr Diess’s remarks came after reports on Tuesday that Apple intends to produce its first electric vehicle by 2024.

The iPhone maker began to work on its self- driving and electric vehicle programme, known internally as Project Titan, in 2014. While it has yet to publicly discuss any of its self-driving goals, about 5,000 engineers and scientists were reported to be part of the project as of 2018.

VW has about 12 car brands from seven European countries, including Audi, Bugatti, Lamborghini, Porsche, Skoda and Bentley. It plans to produce 22 million electric vehicles in 10 years and about 70 new electric models by 2028.

The German car maker plans to have hybrids and electric vehicles account for 60 per cent of its car sales by 2030, up from an earlier target of 40 per cent.

Last month, it increased its planned investment in electric vehicle technology to $86 billion over the next five years.

Electric vehicles are set to account for 2.5 per cent of global car sales this year, up from 1 per cent in 2017, according to the Bank of America Merrill Lynch. The US lender predicted that they will make up 90 per cent of car sales by 2050.

Mr Diess said the world’s most valuable company would be “a mobility company ... it could be Tesla, Apple or Volkswagen”.

The Covid-19 pandemic has increased the world’s focus on the future of cars. With Tesla joining the S&P 500 index this month, some industry analysts say electric vehicles are on track to dominate the global car industry.

The industry received a boost from president-elect Joe Biden’s triumph in the US elections and China plans for the sector.

Other technology companies such as Amazon and Alphabet are also backing self-driving, electric initiatives but they are focused on mass transport.

Alphabet’s Waymo operates a commercial self-driving taxi service while Amazon-backed Zoox intends to create a ride-hailing service that relies on self-driving cars.