14 DAY TRIAL // An interesting report from the San Francisco Chronicle suggests the iCar dream is not really as far-fetched as it sounds. Apple reportedly had a meeting with Tesla some time ago and the purpose of the discussion was allegedly to buy the car maker outright.
When it comes to large acquisitions, Apple – with over $160B/€116B in the bank – can hold its own. But it has yet to prove that potential, as it only buys small companies from time to time.
It’s actually one of the primary reasons why its cash balance is the way it is. But that doesn’t mean it’s set in stone.
According to this report from the San Francisco Chronicle, “In October 2013, German investment banking analyst Adnaan Ahmad created a media stir when he wrote an ‘open letter’ to Apple CEO Tim Cook and board director Al Gore, urging the company to acquire Tesla.”
“Six months before Ahmad's letter, Musk met with Perica and probably Cook at Apple headquarters, said the source, who spoke on the condition of anonymity to protect business relationships.”
Needless to point out, Apple would need quite an important reason to put all these high-ups in a room and discuss doing business together.
Some would say the meeting was to integrate iOS in Tesla cars of the future, but that wouldn’t involve Apple's head of acquisitions, Adrian Perica.
So what would an iCar look like? Well, Tesla has some killer designs that hardly need any adjusting from Jony Ive and his crew. Chances are Apple’s input would have been literally under the hood (at least in the first few years).
The paper also quotes Bill Kreher, an analyst with Edward Jones Investments in St. Louis, as saying, “Apple must increasingly rely on new products to reignite growth beyond the vision [of Steve Jobs]. They need the next big thing.”