FORMER Aston Martin chief engineer and, up until recently, Tesla Motors’ vice-president of engineering, Chris Porritt, has reportedly taken up a secret new role in special projects for global tech giant Apple.

Tesla has confirmed that Mr Porritt left the company in September last year – just two years after he was hired by the Californian EV marque – however Apple has refused to comment on the significant new appointment, which technology website Electrek and its sister publication 9to5Mac this week claimed to have uncovered.

According to the publications, Mr Porritt is believed to have replaced Steve Zadesky as the driving force behind Apple’s so-called Project Titan electric vehicle initiative, handing him the intentionally vague title of ‘Special Projects Group PD Administrator’.

Apple has yet to officially confirm it is developing an electric vehicle – believed to have a high level of automation – but the company is known to have recruited a number of automotive engineers and experts in batteries and other related fields.

 

Next move: Chris Porritt is seen here describing the cold-weather performance of Tesla’s Model S in the early stages of his two-year tenure at the company. He is now reportedly working for Apple on the tech giant’s first EV.

 

Its program is also widely understood in the industry to be running full-steam ahead in a bid to rival other tech companies such as Google and the major players in the automotive sector, all of whom are investing heavily in electrification and autonomous vehicle development.

Mr Porritt was the chief engineer at Aston Martin for more than 15 years and is credited as a key figure behind iconic vehicles such as the One-77 supercar, V12 Zagato and the DB9.

At Tesla, Mr Porritt would have worked on the EV manufacturer’s three key vehicles, the Model S large sedan, Model X SUV and the recently unveiled Model 3 mid-size sedan.

By Terry Martin