Apple is secretly working with Contemporary Amperex Technology Limited (CATL), a Chinese battery manufacturer on automotive battery research and development, according to Yicai Global, a Shanghai-based news group.
CATL supplies lithium-ion battery cells, modules, packs, and systems to the global electric vehicle market and energy storage markets. It’s established partnerships with companies such as BMW. In 2016, CATL was ranked among the top three suppliers of battery power solutions globally.
“If Apple is working with CATL on a battery, the possibility that Apple will continue to make cars cannot be ruled out as one of the core components of self-driving electric cars is the battery,” CCID Consulting’s New Energy Director Wu Hui told Yicai Global.
Chances this rumor is true, according to the Sellers Research Firm (that’s me): 99% (though I still don’t think Apple will manufacture cars itself).
