According to a report by Bloomberg, Apple is still trying its hand at robots after the failure of its car project.
Apple is looking for new growth markets and has set its sights on developing personal robots, according to informed sources. The people, who spoke on condition of anonymity, told Bloomberg that the project is still in its early stages and that it is unclear whether the products will eventually be released.
Apple had previously told its executives that the company's future would focus on three areas: Car, Home, and Mixed Reality. With the cancellation of the car project and the release of its first mixed reality product, the Vision Pro headset, the focus has shifted, according to Bloomberg.
Will an iPad moving robot be the first product?
According to the report, the iPhone maker's engineers are working on a mobile robot that can follow users around their homes, for example. A tabletop robot has also been developed that can move a screen to mimic the head movements of a FaceTime participant. Household robots are also planned as a long-term goal. The robots are being developed in Apple's Hardware Engineering and AI and Machine Learning groups, led by John Giannandrea. Hardware development is overseen by Matt Costello and Brian Lynch, who specialize in products for the home.
On its website, Apple advertises jobs in robotics and notes that the company is looking to expand the teams working on the project. "Our team works at the intersection of modern machine learning and robotics to shape the AI that will power the next generation of Apple products," the job description reads.