The 'Blade' battery packs in today's BYD electric cars may have been influenced by secret work on the now-cancelled Apple car, it has been uncovered. A new report from Bloomberg has revealed BYD was one of Apple's many partners during the tech giant's decade-long project to develop an autonomous electric car, scrapped earlier this year.

Uber wasn’t the first western company to collaborate with BYD. Nope, according to a report from Bloomberg, it was the inventor of the iPhone, Apple. The US-based publication reported that the American technology giant discreetly worked with the Chinese EV-maker for years as it tried to develop its own autonomous electric car.

Apple secretly collaborated with Chinese automaker BYD to develop long-range electric vehicle battery technology as part of its now-nixed Apple

Apple's collaboration with Chinese battery company BYD on battery development for its now-canceled Apple Car project has been revealed.

Before the Project Titan was scrapped, Apple reportedly worked with Chinese automaker BYD on custom batteries for Apple Car for years, but ultimately abandoned that partnership too.

As reported by Bloomberg on Wednesday, Apple has worked closely with Chinese automaker BYD. Both companies reportedly reached an agreement around 2017 to build batteries using lithium iron phosphate cells (LFP). The technology would significantly increase the autonomy of the car and was also considered safer than typical electric vehicle batteries.

The details, which remained under wraps until now, come from people familiar with the situation who spoke to Bloomberg. According to the sources, the iPhone maker

For years, Apple was rumored to be working on a futuristic self-driving car, with the company tied to collaborations with Volkswagen and even a potential deal to buy McLaren at one point. That never happened and the project was canned after 10 years,

Apple's decision to axe its car project shocked everyone, but the failed Apple Car development might have helped BYD become the EV powerhouse it is today

Apple Inc. worked with Chinese automaker BYD Co. for years as part of its now-canceled car project, developing long-range batteries that helped lay the groundwork for technology used today, according to people familiar with the situation.