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Apple is building a self-driving car in Silicon Valley, and is scouting for secure locations in the San Francisco Bay area to test it, the Guardian has learned. Documents show the oft-rumoured Apple car project appears to be further along than many suspected.
In May, engineers from Apple’s secretive Special Project group met with officials from GoMentum Station, a 2,100-acre former naval base near San Francisco that is being turned into a high-security testing ground for autonomous vehicles.
In correspondence obtained by the Guardian under a public records act request, Apple engineer Frank Fearon wrote: “We would ... like to get an understanding of timing and availability for the space, and how we would need to coordinate around other parties who would be using [it].”
Automobile manufacturing is a radical departure from Apple's core business. Can they pull it off?
Original Submission
(Score: 3, Insightful) by frojack on Saturday August 15 2015, @06:48PM
The car "owns" your body for the duration of the trip.
That is substantially different from you "owning" the phone that is turned off and in your pocket.
If you thing its just about advertising, you are sadly mistaken. By and large, people's disposable income
hasn't increased. You can advertise all you want, but people aren't going to buy much more.
There is a far bigger motive here. They want to own transportation. You won't own a car. The car will own you.
No, you are mistaken. I've always had this sig.
(Score: 2, Interesting) by tftp on Sunday August 16 2015, @03:22AM
You won't own a car. The car will own you.
Not sure how exactly can that be done. Even if you imagine that the law forbids adding a switch to disable speakers, and to cover the advertising LCD with a dark cloth, nothing can possibly prevent you from donning noise-cancelling headphones and turning away from the screen. But chances are good that even if the car comes with advertising, it can be disabled. If they are smart, there will be an option for that - perhaps even a paid option, like the one that AT&T charges for today to have you removed from their phone books. If they are stupid, the audio wires will be cut and a tiny, concealed, and remotely operated switch installed. The law will be ignored, just as today people casually ignore inconvenient laws (do not drive too fast, do not park here, do not turn here, do not loiter here, etc.)
Such "ownage" was already attempted near where I live. An owner of a gas station installed new pumps with a video feed and speakers. When installed, the speakers blared ads while you were pumping gas. A couple weeks later the volume was reduced to minimum. I'm sure that was not done willingly. Perhaps the owner of the gas station got tired of cleaning the speaker's grille from the expandable foam that Home Depot sells. Or perhaps the owner got too many complaints. Or perhaps the owner noticed that people started to avoid his station. You mess with people at your own risk - and that risk is significant.