Ondrej Holzman He hasn't been heard from much in recent years, but now it appears that Bob Mansfield is returning to his day job at Apple. According to the latest information, CEO Tim Cook has installed him in the role of head of the so far classified automotive project.
According to sources The Wall Street Journal with the workers who, in recent weeks, have been reporting to Bob Mansfield on the so-called Titan Project, as Apple's automotive project is called. At the same time, he only had a kind of advisory voice at Apple in recent years, when he left the highest positions three years ago.
Previously, Mansfield, who came to Apple in 1999, held the role of head of hardware engineering and was one of the company's highest-ranking and at the same time most respected managers under Steve Jobs. Now, after years in seclusion, he appears to be returning to action.
The Californian firm and Mansfield himself are to report The Wall Street Journal as expected, they refused to comment, after all, the whole project, within the framework of which Apple is supposed to develop a car, is still just speculation. Given Apple's activities in this field - such as hiring specialized workers or renting various objects - but it is more of a public secret.
It is unclear what the deployment of Bob Mansfield at the head of the entire ambitious project is supposed to signal. At Apple, Mansfield has a reputation as a decisive manager who thrives on complex projects, of which he has already completed quite a few. His achievements include MacBook Air, iMac and iPad. It is not yet clear whether he will sign an apple car or some other product associated with an automotive product.
Mansfield's new position could indicate two things: either Apple is demonstrating how broad a base of highly capable executives it has, or on the contrary, "Project Titan" has found itself in trouble and the experienced Mansfield is supposed to be the one to get it back on track.
