The partnership between Apple and Chinese electric car maker BYD has been going on for several years and marks an important attempt to revolutionize electric vehicle (EV) battery technology.
Started around 2017, the secret partnership aims to develop safer long-range batteries using lithium iron phosphate (LFP) cells.
Although the collaboration eventually dissolved, BYD's Blade battery system is the result of those early efforts, improving safety, efficiency and cost-effectiveness.
Today, BYD's entire car lineup uses Blade batteries, making it a leading global EV manufacturer.
Although Apple doesn't own the technology behind BYD's Blade battery, their collaboration laid a crucial foundation for Apple's ambitious, now-cancelled car project.
BYD contributed its advanced manufacturing techniques, while Apple engineers focused on advanced battery pack design and thermal management.
While Apple pulled out of the EV project, BYD thrived, leveraging their partnership's innovation to become China's largest automaker by sales, even briefly surpassing Tesla.
While Apple's vision for its own car never came to fruition, the knowledge gained continued to impact its other technologies, such as the Vision Pro headset and AI processor, demonstrating the lasting influence of the Apple-BYD collaboration.
