Apple exploring cars, medical devices to reignite growth/That car is Tesla

This is a very interesting potential deal to look at.  Years ago it would have been unheard, unthinkable, for a tech company to buy an auto manufacturer.  Not today, though.  So much of the future of transportation now rides on technology and innovation.  Of course, Apple would bring amazing talents to the design side as well.

An investment and acquisition by Apple of Tesla would further affirm Tesla's potential as a major, global player.  Not many companies build value in a brand like Apple, and Monk would be a great addition to the Apple talented team.

We love seeing any investment in EV's and welcome this possible collaboration between Apple and Tesla:

"Adrian Perica is a very busy man. Over the past 18 months, the mergers and acquisitions chief at Apple has been scouring the globe looking for deals, snatching up everything from search engines and data analytics to mapping software and motion tracking chips.

Such a buying spree has ignited fierce speculation in tech circles and on Wall Street about Apple's future ambitions, especially as smartphone and tablet sales start to slow. Most of that speculation has centered on wearable technology or perhaps a souped-up upgrade of Apple TV.

But Apple is thinking bigger. Much bigger.

A source tells The Chronicle that Perica met with Tesla CEO Elon Musk in Cupertino last spring around the same time analysts suggested Apple acquire the electric car giant.

A spokeswoman for Tesla declined to comment. Apple did not respond to a request for comment.

The newspaper has also learned that Apple is heavily exploring medical devices, specifically sensor technology that can help predict heart attacks. Led by Tomlinson Holman, a renowned audio engineer who invented THX and 10.2 surround sound, Apple is exploring ways to predict heart attacks by studying the sound blood makes at it flows through arteries.

Taken together, Apple's potential forays into automobiles and medical devices, two industries worlds away from consumer electronics, underscore the company's deep desire to move away from iPhones and iPads and take big risks.

"Apple must increasingly rely on new products to reignite growth beyond the vision" of late founder Steve Jobs, said Bill Kreher, an analyst with Edward Jones Investments in St. Louis. "They need the next big thing."

Actions suggest urgency

Of course, Apple's dalliances may never bear fruit - so to speak. With funds of almost $160 billion in cash and investments, the company can afford to indulge a bit.

But Apple's moves of late suggest a bit more urgency. Since the company hired Perica from Goldman Sachs in 2009, Apple has quickened its pace of acquisitions. Last month, the company disclosed in a regulatory filing that it spent $525 million on deals in the previous quarter, almost double what it spent for the entire previous year.

While iPhones and iPads remain tremendously popular, the U.S. market for smartphones and tablets is quickly maturing. At home and overseas, Apple faces strong competition from Android-based mobile devices.

Until now, most of Wall Street's attention has focused on Apple's long rumored iWatch device. Along with Google Glass, such "wearable technology" represents the next wave of consumer electronics.

Wearable devices a good fit

Wearable devices make intuitive sense for Apple; electric cars and cardiac monitors not as much. And that's exactly why Apple should pursue those ideas, some analysts say.

In October 2013, German investment banking analyst Adnaan Ahmad created a media stir when he wrote an "open letter" to Apple CEO Tim Cook and board director Al Gore, urging the company to acquire Tesla.

"I know this is radical and potentially 'transformative' but this would radically alter Apple's growth profile," Ahmad wrote. "In Elon Musk, you could strike up a partnership and obtain a new iconic partner to lead Apple's innovation drive."

As it turns out, Apple already had the same idea.

Six months before Ahmad's letter, Musk met with Perica and probably Cook at Apple headquarters, said the source, who spoke on the condition of anonymity to protect business relationships. While a megadeal has yet to emerge (for all of its cash, Apple still plays hardball on valuation), such a high-level meeting between the two Silicon Valley giants involving their top dealmakers suggests Apple was very much interested in buying the electric car pioneer.

Analysts say it's unclear what Tesla would gain from such a deal..."