San Francisco, Feb 8 (IANS): Elon Musk-owned electric vehicle company Tesla is developing an App Store that would feature on the cars' touchscreen control panel, media reports say.

Even as Musk backs Epic Games and calls Apple's App Store, "a de facto global tax", it's said that Tesla is working on its own rival, reports AppleInsider.

Rumours were initially started when Tesla released an update that allowed for a customisable icon bar at the foot of the touchscreen.

According to TheDriven, though, an investor the publication describes as being "in the know," has been hinting about Tesla App Store.

Investor Sawyer Merritt tweeted a video of Steve Jobs unveiling the App Store, and said it is coming soon, the report said.

Merritt has not specifically said that there is a Tesla App Store. And Tesla has not announced one, but Musk has recently tweeted that, "Tesla is as much a software company as it is a hardware (one)."

TheDriven quotes other sources saying a Tesla App Store will launch before deliveries of the company's Cyber Truck. None have strong evidence, however, so it may be nothing more than guesswork.