Home Robotics May Be Apple’s Next Big Project

Apple is reportedly venturing into the development of personal home robots after discontinuing its electric vehicle project, according to a Bloomberg report last Wednesday.

Engineers at Apple have been exploring the concept of a home robot capable of following people around their residences. Part of this would apparently also involve a device the company’s also been working on that would control a display’s movement using robotics.

While it was forced to scale back on its ambitious electric vehicle project, codenamed “Project Titan,” just last February, the company faces pressure to find new ways to make money. This new initiative marks one way it may be planning to expand into new product markets.

The electric car project, which garnered significant attention since its inception in 2014, failed mostly because of internal disagreements over the direction of the Apple car, The New York Times reported. In recent years, the tech giant has focused on other products and services like the Apple Watch, Vision Pro virtual reality headset, and now, Personal Home Robots.

The home robot project is still in its initial research and development phase, but it is part of  Apple’s larger goal of exploring artificial intelligence and machine learning groups to grow its product catalog.

The Business Times reports that Apple is currently hiring for robotics-related roles as it’s trying to expand the teams working on the robotics project. The description of one of the new roles on Apple’s site reads,

“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…We are looking for innovative and hardworking ML and robotics researchers and engineers that help us research, define, and develop complex intelligent robotic systems and experiences in the real world,” as quoted by Bloomberg.