Hyundai Motor Co. backed away from a statement confirming it is in talks with Apple Inc. on developing self-driving car that fueled an $8 billion surge in the Korean automaker’s market value Friday, saying instead that it received requests for potential cooperation from a number of companies.
In a bizarre move, Hyundai on Thursday night confirmed discussions with Apple to collaborate on the development of self-driving electric vehicles, then in a matter of hours, walked back on its remarks issuing a new statement that removed any references to the tech giant.
The South Korean car manufacturer initially confirmed the news, stating that “Apple and Hyundai are in discussion, but as it is at early stage (sic), nothing has been decided.”
Reports from the TV unit of Korea Economic Daily claimed that Hyundai has completed internal talks regarding the project and is awaiting approval from the chairman. News of the talks saw Hyundai shares rise by as much as 24 per cent, the biggest daily gain the company has experienced since 1988.
Hyundai Revises Public Statement, Removing any reference to working with Apple on a Future Car
Late yesterday Patently Apple posted a report titled While Apple continues to Hire Tesla Engineers & Executives to their Future Vehicle Project, it s Johny Srouji s contribution that s a Surprise. The report noted that rumors over the last month have tried to escalate the timing of a car to market prematurely for the sake of hype. Late yesterday a rumor swept the globe with Hyundai hyping up their potential of working on the Apple car only to reverse course once the rumor got out of hand.
Hyundai Motor Co. has backed away from a statement confirming it is in talks with Apple Inc. on developing self-driving car that fueled an $8 billion surge in the Korean automaker’s market value Friday, saying instead that it received requests for potential cooperation from a number of companies.