Ferrari, the high-end luxury car brand, has just appointed Apple’s Head of Internet Software and Services, Eddie Cue, to its board of directors. Eddie has said the following about joining Ferrari’s board:
I am pleased and proud to become a member of the board, I have personally dreamed of owning a Ferrari since I was eight years old and have been lucky to be an owner for the past five years. I continue to be awed by the world-class design and engineering that only Ferrari can do.
Why does the appointment of Cue even matter to us? Simple: many are speculating that Apple is looking into possibly developing technologies for luxury cars in the near future. While most automakers have some type of premium iPod integration option, the software and hardware that is produced for those solutions is handled by third-parties. If Apple made in-car entertainment systems in luxury cars, we could very well see an iOS-like experience built right into Ferraris and other high-end automobiles.
It’s also worth noting that Apple was apparently in discussion with automakers to implement a Siri button into cars. Apple announced these plans at WWDC 2012, their yearly developer conference. GM, Jaguar and other auto manufacturers have said they will be implementing the Siri button sooner rather than later.
Does anyone else plan on lining up at their local Ferrari dealership for the iCar? I know I don’t.
Image Credit: Axion23
