Apple laying off 614 California workers after scrapping electric car project

Apple is laying off 614 workers in California following reports that emerged earlier this year that the tech giant is abandoning its effort to build an electric car. 

A state filing from Apple shows that the job cuts will impact eight offices in Santa Clara County and will go into effect on May 27.  

The filing did not name the project, but roles affected by the layoffs include “machine shop” managers, product design engineers and hardware engineers, according to the San Francisco Chronicle. 

In February, Apple announced internally that it was canceling its effort to build an electric car, dubbed Project Titan, according to Bloomberg. 

APPLE SCRAPPING ELECTRIC CAR PROJECT 

The company spent billions of dollars on the project, and the move surprised the nearly 2,000 employees who were working on it, Bloomberg also reported. 

The outlet said that some of the workers would be redirected to focus on Apple’s generative artificial intelligence division, while others will be laid off. 

Rumors have swirled for years that Apple was trying to build an autonomous electric taxi in an effort to take on electric vehicle giant Tesla.  

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In 2017, Apple CEO Tim Cook confirmed that the company was working on autonomous systems that could have applications in the self-driving car segment. 

That year, Apple obtained a permit from the state of California to test vehicles equipped with self-driving equipment on public roads. 

But ultimately, top executives decided in February of this year to scrap the project after it reached a “make-or-break point,” Bloomberg reported. 

Apple did not immediately respond Friday to a request for comment from FOX Business.