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Apple, Ferrari in talks to broaden in-car infotainment pact

The maker of luxury cars unveils a four-seater with integrated Siri voice assistant and two iPad Minis in the backseat, as well as a new hybrid-powered supercar with 949 horsepower.

Steven Musil Night Editor / News
Steven Musil is the night news editor at CNET News. He's been hooked on tech since learning BASIC in the late '70s. When not cleaning up after his daughter and son, Steven can be found pedaling around the San Francisco Bay Area. Before joining CNET in 2000, Steven spent 10 years at various Bay Area newspapers.
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Steven Musil
2 min read
Ferrari's new LaFerrari, a hybrid with 949 horsepower. Ferrari

Ferrari is in negotiations to expand its in-car entertainment partnership with Apple, the luxury-car maker's chairman revealed today as the company unveiled a car with Siri and two iPad Minis.

The companies will be "more precise" about their partnership in the coming months, Luca Cordero Di Montezemolo said today at the Geneva International Motor Show, according to a Bloomberg account of his comments. CNET has contacted Apple for more comment and will update this report when we learn more.

The partnership apparently began last November when Eddy Cue, Apple's senior vice president for Internet software and services, was invited to join Ferrari's board of directors. Cue is said to be a collector of sports cars, including a Ferrari.

Di Montezemolo's comments come on the same day Ferrari unveiled the new FF, the first four-wheel-drive four-seater in the company's history. The car features "seamless integration" with an Apple infotainment system via the Siri-based Eyes Free voice-command system and two iPad Minis for the use of passengers in the backseat.

The Eyes Free functionality, which was introduced at last year's WWDC, allows drivers to interact with Apple's iOS voice assistant without having to rely on visual cues, or interact with on-screen menus.

The luxury-car maker's big moment came when it took the wraps off the much-anticipated LaFerrari, which happens to be a hybrid. The next-generation supercar delivers an astounding 949 horsepower via a 789-horsepower 6.3-liter V12 gasoline engine and a 160-horsepower electric motor. Together, they propel it to 62 miles per hour from a dead start in less than three seconds and a top speed of 217 miles per hour.

Only 499 were made, each of which will sell for at least 1 million euros ($1.3 million).