The Apple Car was unsurprisingly not a topic of discussion at this week's WWDC 2021 keynote, but it has not been forgotten yet. The latest word is that Apple is reportedly in talks with a Chinese battery manufacturer to supply power cells for Apple's first electric car.

This is according to a new report from Reuters, which states that Apple is in talks with CATL and BYD, the world's largest supplier of electric vehicle batteries, which currently supply batteries to the world's largest electric vehicle manufacturers, including Tesla, BMW, and Hyundai. BYD is the fourth largest and last year partnered with Toyota to develop an electric car that will appeal to drivers.

Four Reuters sources, who asked not to be named, stressed that talks are still vexing. The talks are still subject to change, and there is no guarantee that the talks will be successful.

In addition, Apple's condition that the batteries be manufactured in the U.S. may end any hope of a partnership with CATL. The company is reportedly hesitant to build a factory in the U.S. because of ongoing political tensions between the U.S. and Chinese governments.

The Apple Car has been rumored for several years at this point, and there have been quite a few reports this year about the car's development. Apple was reportedly negotiating with one of two companies, Hainudai and Kia, to build the Apple Car. Unfortunately, these negotiations reportedly fell through after news of the talks became public.

Apple reportedly spoke with a number of automakers, many of which expressed concern about giving Apple so much control and that it might become the "Foxconn of the auto industry" (referring to the Taiwanese company that makes the iPhone). It was later reported that LG and Canadian auto parts manufacturer Magna were close to signing a deal to manufacture Apple cars.

Apple has never publicly commented on the Apple Car and declined to comment on the Reuters report.

According to various reports, the Apple Car will be a fully autonomous, all-electric vehicle. Rumors suggest that Apple will offer a mono-cell battery design to improve range and safety. The battery itself is also said to utilize lithium iron phosphate, which is cheaper to manufacture than batteries made from nickel or cobalt.

With no suppliers for key components like the battery, it will still be quite some time before we see an Apple car on U.S. roads. However, the fact that Apple is trying to coordinate these deals suggests that some progress is being made.

Some reports suggest that the Apple Car may appear by 2024, but this is a rather optimistic view and depends on how successful Apple is in its deals with various suppliers. While Apple has had great success in managing supply chains for other products, cars are more complex than iPhones. Therefore, we will have to wait and see what happens and whether suppliers agree to Apple's demands.