<p> <i> 11.50 am </i>

iCar? Apple sets up secret lab to develop electric car

The research lab was set up in late 2014, soon after Apple
 revealed its forthcoming smart watch and latest iPhones.

Apple Inc. has a secret lab working on the creation of an Apple-branded electric car, the Wall Street Journal reported on Friday, citing people familiar with the matter.

The project has designed a vehicle that looks like a minivan, the newspaper quoted one person as saying. It would take years to finish the project, and it is not certain if Apple will eventually build a car, theJournal said.

The news signals that Apple is sharply raising its ambitions for automotive technology, which has become a prime area of interest for Silicon Valley companies ranging from Google Inc to ride-sharing firm Uber to electric car-maker Tesla Motors Inc.

Last March, Apple unveiled CarPlay, which lets drivers access contacts on their iPhones, make calls or listen to voicemails without taking their hands off the steering wheel.

Now, the head of Mercedes-Benz's Silicon Valley research and development unit, Johann Jungwirth, has defected to Apple, according to a LinkedIn profile, which said his title was head of Mac Systems Engineering.

The Financial Times reported earlier that Apple had created the secret lab and that Mr. Jungwirth had joined the new research team.

The research lab was set up in late 2014, soon after Apple revealed its forthcoming smart watch and latest iPhones, the Financial Times said.

The Wall Street Journal said that the Apple project, code-named "Titan," employed several hundred people working a few miles from Apple's headquarters in Cupertino, California.

Google is working on plans for a self-driving car, but that is not part of Apple's plan, the Journal said.</p>