Car

Apple’s self-driving technology testbed spotted driving on Silicon Valley roads

Christian Zibreg ∙ April 28, 2017

After obtaining a permit from the California Department of Motor Vehicles two weeks ago, first real-world images of the vehicle Apple's using to test its rumored autonomous driving software have now surfaced. Bloomberg was able to obtain photos of a sensor-laden white Lexus R450h SUV as it emerged from an Apple facility.

The car was outfitted with two radars, a bunch of cameras and a Velodyne 64-channel LiDAR, a detection system that works on the principle of radar but uses light from a laser.

Apple-backed Didi Chuxing raises $5.5+ billion from investors for international expansion

Christian Zibreg ∙ April 28, 2017

Chinese ride-hailing service Didi Chixung has successfully raised more than $5.5 billion from investors to bankroll an expansion beyond China and into driver-less technology.

Bloomberg reported Friday that Didi, which counts Apple as one of its backers, disclosed the latest round of financing in an emailed statement.

Chinese ride-hailing service Didi to receive $5B in funding for automated driving expansion

Christian Zibreg ∙ April 26, 2017

Chinese ride-hailing giant Didi Chuxing is near an agreement to raise $5 billion to $6 billion for automated driving expansion, Bloomberg reported Wednesday. The financing round will lift Didi’s valuation to a cool $50 billion, up from a previous $34 billion after its acquisition of Uber’s China business. It would make the Beijing-based company the country's top startup by market valuation, even surpassing handset maker Xiaomi, and the most valuable startup in the world after Uber.

Apple hires former NASA veterans for augmented reality and self-driving software testing

Christian Zibreg ∙ Updated October 17, 2018

Apple has hired several expets from the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA), including three engineers who worked at the space organization's Jet Propulsion Laboratory. They, along with other engineers, have been tasked with working on Apple's rumored augmented reality projects and self-driving software initiatives.

According to the latest articles from Bloomberg, Dow Jones Newswire and Business Insider, a rare bureaucratic mistake has revealed Apple’s secret team of NASA veterans and experts holding PhDs in robotics and other related fields. They were apparently recruited for Project Titan, Apple's self-driving car project, and augmented reality, another not-so-secret Apple initiative.

Apple receives permit to test self-driving cars in California

Christian Zibreg ∙ Updated April 28, 2017

Apple was added to the list of 29 other companies, including Tesla, Google, Ford and Mercedes, that are testing or planning to test self-driving vehicles in the state of California, according to the California Department of Motor Vehicles's (DMV) website Friday.

The permit allows Apple to test vehicles in autonomous mode on public roads.

It's unclear if Apple sought to obtain a permit because it wanted to test-drive its own autonomous vehicles or if the company was simply looking to experiment with the rumored autonomous driving features in a future CarPlay version.

Apple pens letter to NHTSA regarding autonomous vehicle policies

Cody Lee ∙ December 3, 2016

Apple in November penned a letter to the NHTSA (U.S. National Highway Traffic Safety Administration) regarding autonomous vehicle polices and other concerns. VentureBeat unearthed the letter, which was signed by Apple VP of Product Integrity and former Ford safety executive Steve Kenner.

Where the Apple Car is going

Sébastien Page ∙ November 17, 2016

Neil Cybart wrote a detailed analysis of Apple's seemingly scaled back ambitions for the Apple Car. From building an electric car to now building software for autonomous driving, Cybart looks into why Apple might have changed course.

KGI: Apple’s AR tech could end up in autonomous driving system

Cody Lee ∙ November 2, 2016

KGI Securities' Ming-Chi Kuo issued a new research note to investors on Wednesday regarding his vision for Apple's augmented reality efforts. In the letter, the noted analyst says that we likely won't see these efforts for 1-2 years, but when we do they will redefine Apple's current products and open up new categories.

Report: Apple has team in Canada working on car operating system

Cody Lee ∙ Updated May 17, 2018

Apple has dozens of software engineers in Canada building a car operating system, reports Bloomberg. The engineers are said to be working at an office in Kanata, close to the offices of BlackBerry's QNX, where many of them were previously employed.

Bloomberg: Apple gives up building a car, for now

Christian Zibreg ∙ October 17, 2016

Project Titan, Apple's ambitious initiative to build an electric vehicle by 2020-2021 reportedly fell apart amid management crisis, supply chain issues and departures, prompting the company's leadership to shift gears and focus on autonomous self-driving software, for now.

Bloomberg's Mark Gurman reported Monday that Apple will decide fate of self-driving software by late 2017 as the new direction no longer includes building its own car.

Apple shutters parts of its car project as it rethinks strategy

Cody Lee ∙ Updated May 17, 2018

Apple is rethinking what it plans to do about self-driving cars, reports The New York Times. Citing sources familiar with the project, the outlet said on Friday that the company has shuttered parts of its self-driving car project and laid off dozens of employees.

These moves are the latest signs of trouble involving Apple's oft-rumored initiative, codenamed Project Titan. In July it was reported that the team, under new leader Bob Mansfield, had shifted its focus from building a vehicle to an autonomous driving system.

If you live in Pittsburgh, your next Uber might be self-driving

Cody Lee ∙ Updated May 1, 2018

Folks in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania will soon be able to summon a self-driving car from Uber, reports Bloomberg. The outlet says that the ride-sharing service plans to deploy a fleet of specially modified Volvo XC90 SUVs, supervised by humans, in the city later this month.