McLaren has denied earlier reports by the Financial Times and others Apple has approached it over a potential takeover or strategic investment. 

"There's no takeover, no strategic investment," a McLaren spokesperson told Business Insider. "It's completely untrue."

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However, this doesn't necessarily mean that Apple hasn't considered McLaren an acquisition target in the past and certainly doesn't mean the Cupertino-based giant won't approach the supercar maker in the future.

"The nature of our business means we regularly have conversations with all sorts of parties, but those conversations remain confidential," A different McLaren spokesperson told the New York Times. "We're not in a position to confirm or deny any previous conversation."

The NYT said Apple was also in talks with Lit Motors, a San Francisco start-up that has developed an electric self-balancing motorcycle, about a potential acquisition and has already hired several former Lit Motors engineers.

Apple declined to comment, as did Lit Motors. Wayne Bruce, a spokesman for McLaren, said in an emailed statement that the company was "not in discussion with Apple in respect of any potential investment".

But McLaren did not deny having had conversations with Apple. In a phone call with the NYT, Bruce added: "The nature of our business means we regularly have conversations with all sorts of parties, but those conversations remain confidential. We're not in a position to confirm or deny any previous conversation."

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