Apple watchers have been waiting in vain for the company to launch a new product that disrupts a market the way the iPhone shook up the smartphone world
Apple watchers have been waiting in vain for the company to launch a new product that disrupts a market the way the iPhone shook up the smartphone world AFP

Apple engineers are working on making personal robots, a report said on Wednesday, just weeks after the iPhone-maker abandoned its efforts to develop an electric car.

The tech titan has people working on a robot that would follow people around at home and be helpful, according to Bloomberg that cited unnamed people familiar with the situation.

The project was in a nascent stage and it was unclear whether it would lead to a product sold by Apple, the report indicated.

Apple did not reply to a request for comment.

The California-based company has been looking for new ways to make money beyond its iPhones and the digital content and services it sells to users.

Apple recently abandoned its ambitions to produce an electric car, according to US media reports, ending a struggling decade-long project.

It has never publicly disclosed its EV plans, despite a steady drip of media leaks over the years.

Apple is reported to have transferred employees from the shuttered car division to generative artificial intelligence projects.

The robot project is being overseen by Apple's hardware engineering division and its AI and machine learning group, Bloomberg reported.

The report came as analysts are keen to hear what progress Apple is making with AI at the company's annual WWDC developers gathering at its Silicon Valley campus in June.

Around the world, major tech companies including Google, Microsoft, Meta and Amazon are rapidly pursuing the development and deployment of AI products.