What could be the next big partnership in the auto industry would have been a head-scratcher a decade ago: Apple Inc. (NASDAQ: AAPL) and BlackBerry Ltd (NASDAQ: BBRY).
 

The Ottawa Business Journal reports that Apple has rented space in a research park in Ottawa suburb Kanata that is home to BlackBerry automotive software offshoot QNX Software Systems. While there is no hard evidence that Apple will be conducting automotive research at the location, the proximity to QNX would otherwise be quite a coincidence.

 

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Apple has long been rumored to be working on a secret self-driving electric car project code named “Project Titan.” The project is reportedly based out of a secret facility in Sunnyvale, CA. Tech rival Alphabet Inc (NASDAQ: GOOGL) is already test-driving its own self-driving cars.

It’s widely known that Apple’s balance sheet is loaded with cash, and the company has been heavily investing in research and development of late. Apple upped its 2015 R&D budget 34 percent to more than $8 billion.

Disclosure: the author holds no position in the stocks mentioned.