Apple Debuts Device Management Service for SMBs

Apple has debuted a new subscription service to help small- to medium-sized business (SMB) owners manage their employees’ use of the tech giant’s devices, Reuters reported.

The company’s new program is called Business Essentials and works like programs from Microsoft, which are used for large businesses to set up and keep secure phones, laptops and tablets customers use, according to the report.

Apple’s version is “simplified” for businesses with between 50 and 500 employees that don’t have much of an IT department — or none at all in some cases, the report stated.

In addition, Apple will offer another service to help repair or replace broken hardware at a business within four hours, according to the report.

“Time is of the essence — for small businesses, it’s one of their most valuable resources,” Apple Vice President of Enterprise and Education Marketing Susan Prescott told Reuters. “As they start to grow, there are more demands on their time. And that can be in lieu of running the business doing the things they need to do.”

Apple is first testing Business Essentials in the U.S., and the service will be free until a final version rolls out next year, per the report. The tech giant will be expanding the service to other locations in the future.

Apple has also hired Christopher “CJ” Moore, an ex-Tesla engineer, to help improve its self-driving car efforts.

Read more: Apple Hires Former Tesla Engineer to Advance Self-Driving Car Efforts

Apple doesn’t have any plans to put out an autonomous vehicle yet, but the hiring of Moore, who is known for making controversial remarks about Tesla’s Autopilot features, might signal that the company is working on it.

Apple’s autonomous car project, dubbed Project Titan, has been in the works since around 2014.