The person added: "Three people independently complained to me that Apple opened an office in Berlin specifically to cherrypick at Here." This claim was backed up by another source on the ground in Berlin. Here, which provides mapping data, software and services to the automotive, consumer and enterprise sectors, was "bleeding talent" as Microsoft's deal with the German car consortium went through, the source said. "Things are getting a bit better now, but GIS talent is rare." Here said it employs 970 people in Berlin, up from 875 a year ago. Berlin is the company's third biggest site and employee numbers grew in 2014, 2015, and 2016.
Here downplayed the scale of the poaching, and a spokesperson told Business Insider: "Between the Microsoft deal and our acquisition by the German carmakers, the team grew by more than 100 people and our global sales grew significantly over the same time frame. The trend has continued. I state these facts since they contrast with the picture painted by your source." Earlier this week, the Here spokesperson said: "As Here has played a large role in establishing the Berlin tech community, it’s pretty typical that other companies will look at our talent. "But it goes both ways – we have folks in Berlin who have previously worked at Apple, Google, IBM, Microsoft, Amazon and so on." Apple has never publicly confirmed that it has an office in Berlin. Two Berliners working in the city's tech industry told Business Insider that they weren't aware of an Apple office in Berlin.
German publication Frankfurter Allgemeine reported in April that Apple is using a secret Berlin lab to build the Apple Car. The laboratory was reportedly home to 15-20 staff with backgrounds in engineering, software, hardware, and sales. Bloomberg then reported in October that Apple has given up building the Apple Car, for now, choosing instead to focus on developing autonomous driving systems that it could sell to car manufacturers.
Editor - Liam McClelland | @Liamicy | Source: Business Insider