Carmakers and those who make navigation apps usually don’t work particularly closely together. But in what is described as a first, Ford has announced that it will be using Apple Maps, not just as a default navigation app, but also to have it integrated into driver-assistance tech. A bit more specifically, the integration is done via the bitten fruit brand’s MapKit for Automotive SDK.
The New York Times reports that, beyond the integration, engineers from both companies will also be working together to improve said self-driving capabilities. The result of this collaboration will ship with cars rolling out next year. Breaking it down, the bits governing the way a car steers, brakes and responds to traffic will still be done by Ford. But it’s the aforementioned MapKit that’s providing the location of junctions, as well as highway entries and exits.
This lines up with the carmaker’s BlueCruise, a Level 2 ADAS that only provides a hands-free driving experience on highways. The automaker’s engineers are also noted to be developing a more capable version of the driver-assistance tech. But the report cites Ford CEO Jim Farley as saying that the tech that allows cars to drive themselves from highway on-ramps to exits would not be possible without the technology from the iPhone maker. Beyond its critical component designation, the collaboration between the two is said to allow Ford to cut development costs.
The report also cites Eddy Cue, senior vice president of services and health at Apple, who says that Ford is the first major automaker to agree to use the fruit brand’s new automotive software. He also says that the company intends to also offer its MapKit for Automotive SDK to other carmakers. Its own self-driving car program was unceremoniously shuttered back in 2024, so it makes sense to still make use of the results from that research by other means.
