Fun/Unfun for Apple in Cars
Apple Exec Exits Did Global Board
01 SEPTEMBER 2022 - A potentially embarrassing shift on the board of Chinese ride-sharing company Didi Global. Bloomberg (via Yahoo! News) says an Apple exec who had been on the board has quietly slipped out the back. Quoting that piece:
Adrian Perica, Apple’s vice president of corporate development, has resigned from Didi’s board, according to a one-sentence release posted on Didi’s website [in August]. Didi didn’t respond to requests for comment. Apple declined to comment.
Add that to the year-long list of troubles for Didi. In June of last year, the company defied the wishes of the Chinese government and floated an IPO here in the states. After that (perhaps because of that), the report says Didi’s app was “pulled from China’s mobile stores, preventing meaningful growth and erasing more than 80% of its market value.” A piece from The Mac Observer says Chinese authorities ordered the app pulled because of the IPO, though a piece from 9 to 5 Mac says:
The Chinese government declared that Didi had been illegally collecting user data, fined the company, and ordered Apple to remove the app from the App Store.
Meanwhile, the Bloomberg report says the Chinese government issued a fine against Didi of $1.2 billion. That was said to be “for infractions that Beijing said compromised national security…”
Bad news for Didi though - so far - the two Apple connections are having a guy on Didi’s board and Apple being ordered to pull the Didi app. But connections between the two companies go deeper than that. Back in 2016, Apple invested $1B in Didi. Back then, Apple CEO Tim Cook said:
We are making the investment for a number of strategic reasons, including a chance to learn more about certain segments of the China market… Of course, we believe it will deliver a strong return for our invested capital over time as well.
Maybe not so much that second part.
Apple Gains in Car Wars (No Car Required)
There was conjecture at the time that Apple’s Didi investment was tied to whatever plans Apple had for making a car of its own, or perhaps learning how to run a fleet. While the Did investment seems to have yielded no fruit, the constant chatter around Apple and auto seems to be standing the Cupertino-company is good stead.
The consulting and advisory service Strategic Vision issued a press release Wednesday with a crazy assertion: Apple is among the top-three brands in the minds of buyers when they think about buying a future car.
Strategic Vision says its New Vehicle Experience Study “is the largest, most comprehensive survey of new vehicle owners in the US…” For close to three-decades, the firm says, it’s:
…asked new vehicle owners whether they would consider and how they feel about the quality of over forty-five automotive brands, including some not available in the US.
This year, they added one that’s not available at all - throwing Apple Car into the mix. Their finding: “if Apple builds it, customers will come.” Asked which brands they would “Definitely Consider,” survey responses went:
Toyota (38%)
Honda (32%)
Apple (26%)
Ford (21%)
Tesla (20%)
“However,” says Strategic Vision President Alexander Edwards:
Apple’s strength doesn’t end here… What should be concerning to others is that Apple generates a greater amount of Love than any other automotive company, double that of strong brands like Honda, Toyota, and Tesla. For example, over 50% of Tesla owners would 'Definitely Consider' a future Apple vehicle; everyone should be prepared…
“The only weak spot in Apple’s position,” says the press release, “is they haven’t yet produced a vehicle…”
Details, baby, details…
