BMW says talks with Apple don't involve developing a car

FRANKFURT: German carmaker BMW said on Thursday its talks with technology giant Apple did not involve developing or building a car, denying a German magazine report.

Auto Motor und Sport said in its March 4 edition that the two firms were discussing possibilities for cooperating on the development of a passenger car.

Apple was impressed with BMW's carbon-fibre electric cars, the magazine said, citing a "high ranking BMW manager." The BMW spokesman said: "We are in regular talks with companies from the IT and telecommunications sector, including Apple, concerning topics like connected vehicles. Developing or building a car is not a topic of these discussions."

An Apple spokesman said the company did not comment on rumour or speculation. Auto Motor und Sport said Apple cars could be sold in Apple stores and serviced at BMW dealerships.

Among the issues that needed to be resolved was whether BMW would allow Apple to develop an operating system for its i3 model, a step that would require BMW to reveal details of its own vehicle software to the technology giant, the magazine said.

Last month, a source told Reuters that Apple was looking beyond mobile devices to learn how to make a self-driving electric car, and was talking to experts at carmakers and automotive suppliers.