Apple's aggressive recruitment allegedly drives motorcycle startup to bankruptcy
Although Apple has never publicly confirmed that it is developing an electric car, the company has been aggressively hiring auto experts from the likes of Tesla, Ford and Mercedes-Benz.
Now, this strong-arm recruitment has resulted in a startup specializing in electric motorcycles having to close its doors for good due to losing all of its top talent to the iPhone-maker.
The startup in question, Mission Motors, ceased operations in May and filed for bankruptcy in September after multiple staff were tempted to join Apple’s forces, no doubt with increased salaries and benefits. When you consider that Mission Motors only had 35 employees at the time, it’s easy to see how a few key losses could seriously harm the startup.
Former Chief Executive Derek Kaufman said: "Mission had a great group of engineers, specifically electric drive expertize. Apple knew that -- they wanted it, and they went and got it".
The timing of Apple’s approach also worked against Mission, as efforts to raise funding were seriously undermined which resulted in potential investors backing out.
This is not the first time a smaller company has come out second best in a fight against the juggernaut that is Apple. Elon Musk has publicly trolled the Cupertino-based company for hiring its engineers and electric-car battery maker A123 Systems sued Apple earlier in the year for alleged employee poaching.
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