Apple Confirms Acquisition of Self-Driving Vehicle Startup Drive.ai

Apple purchased Drive.ai, an autonomous driving startup based out of Mountain View, the company confirmed to Axios today.

Apple has hired dozens of Drive.ai engineers, and Drive.ai has ceased all operations over the course of the last few weeks.

drive vehicle 4
Rumors in early June suggested Apple was in the process of acquiring Drive.ai to boost its in-house development of a self-driving vehicle system.

The deal at the time was described as an acqui-hire, suggesting Apple was interested in the company for its employees rather than its technology.

Drive.ai was first founded in 2015 by a group of Stanford University students, and launched a self-driving shuttle service in select cities in Texas. The company ran into difficulties, however, and sought out a buyer, which turned out to be Apple.

There's no word on the purchase price, but Axios says Apple has taken on new hires in the areas of engineering and product design.

Rumors have suggested that as part of its self-driving car efforts, Apple is working on a self-driving campus shuttle service to drive employees between the company's various Bay Area offices.

Apple's Drive.ai acquisition confirms that work on the Apple Car project is still underway. Apple in February laid off 190 employees in its self-driving car division as part of a restructuring effort.

Popular Stories

m1 chip slide

Five Years of Apple Silicon: M1 to M5 Performance Comparison

Monday November 10, 2025 1:08 pm PST by
Today marks the fifth anniversary of the Apple silicon chip that replaced Intel chips in Apple's Mac lineup. The first Apple silicon chip, the M1, was unveiled on November 10, 2020. The M1 debuted in the MacBook Air, Mac mini, and 13-inch MacBook Pro. The M1 chip was impressive when it launched, featuring the "world's fastest CPU core" and industry-leading performance per watt, and it's only ...
All Screen iPhone 2027 Feature 1

Apple to Hide Selfie Camera Under Display of 20th Anniversary iPhone

Monday November 10, 2025 1:55 am PST by
Apple will conceal the front-facing camera under the screen of its 2027 iPhone, a Chinese leaker said today, corroborating reports that Apple's 20th anniversary iPhone will have no visible cutouts in the display. Weibo-based account Digital Chat Station said Apple's development of under-screen camera technology was progressing as planned for adoption in 2027, one year after it will...
iphone air thinness

iPhone Air Sales Are So Bad That Apple's Delaying the Next-Generation Version

Monday November 10, 2025 11:41 am PST by
The thin, light iPhone Air sold so poorly that Apple has decided to delay the launch of the next-generation iPhone Air that was scheduled to come out alongside the iPhone 18 Pro, reports The Information. Apple initially planned to release a new iPhone Air in fall 2026, but now that's not going to happen. Since the iPhone Air launched in September, there have been reports of poor sales...
iphone pocket%402x

Apple Debuts iPhone Pocket, a Limited Edition iPod Sock-Style Accessory

Tuesday November 11, 2025 1:23 am PST by
Apple has teamed up with Japanese fashion house ISSEY MIYAKE to launch iPhone Pocket, a 3D-knitted limited edition accessory designed to carry an iPhone, AirPods, and other everyday items. The accessory is like a stretchy pocket, not unlike an iPod Sock, but elongated to form a strap made of a ribbed, elastic textile that fully encloses an iPhone yet allows you to glimpse the display...
iOS 26

iOS 26.2 Available Next Month With These 8 New Features

Tuesday November 11, 2025 9:48 am PST by
Apple released the first iOS 26.2 beta last week. The upcoming update includes a handful of new features and changes on the iPhone, including a new Liquid Glass slider for the Lock Screen's clock, offline lyrics in Apple Music, and more. In a recent press release, Apple confirmed that iOS 26.2 will be released to all users in December, but it did not provide a specific release date....
Early Black Friday Deals 1

The Best Early Black Friday Apple Deals on AirPods, Apple Watch, iPad, and More

Saturday November 8, 2025 6:16 am PST by
We're officially in the month of Black Friday, which will take place on Friday, November 28 in 2025. As always, this will be the best time of the year to shop for great deals, including popular Apple products like AirPods, iPad, Apple Watch, and more. In this article, the majority of the discounts will be found on Amazon. Note: MacRumors is an affiliate partner with some of these vendors. When ...
homepod mini colors

New HomePod Mini Coming Soon With These Features

Tuesday November 11, 2025 7:30 am PST by
Apple is expected to announce a new HomePod mini imminently, headlining with new chips. Here are all of the new features we're expecting. The second-generation HomePod mini is highly likely to contain a more up-to-date chip for more advanced computational audio and improved responsiveness. The current HomePod mini is equipped with the Apple Watch Series 5's S5 chip from 2019. Apple is likely ...
Apple fitness plus feature

Future of Apple Fitness+ 'Under Review'

Sunday November 9, 2025 5:30 am PST by
The future of Apple Fitness+ is "under review" amid a reorganization of the service, according to Bloomberg's Mark Gurman. In the latest edition of his "Power On" newsletter, Gurman said that Apple Fitness+ remains one of the company's "weakest digital offerings." The service apparently suffers from high churn and little revenue. Nevertheless, Fitness+ has a small, loyal fanbase that...
iphone black friday gold

The Best Early Black Friday iPhone Deals

Monday November 10, 2025 10:18 am PST by
Cellular carriers have always offered big savings on the newest iPhone models during the holidays, and Black Friday 2025 sales have kicked off at AT&T, Verizon, T-Mobile, and more. Right now we're tracking notable offers on the iPhone 17, iPhone 17 Pro, iPhone 17 Pro Max, and iPhone Air. For even more savings, keep an eye on older models during the holiday shopping season. Note: MacRumors is...
2024 iPhone Boxes Feature

Apple Adjusts Trade-In Values for iPhones, iPads, Macs, and More

Thursday November 6, 2025 11:12 am PST by
Apple today updated its trade-in values for select iPhone, iPad, Mac, and Apple Watch models. Trade-ins can be completed on Apple's website, or at an Apple Store. The charts below provide an overview of Apple's current and previous trade-in values in the U.S., according to its website. Maximum values for most devices either decreased or saw no change, but the iPad Air received a slight bump. ...

Top Rated Comments

Glockworkorange Avatar
83 months ago
I read this an hour ago: https://www.theverge.com/2019/6/25/18758820/drive-ai-self-driving-startup-shutting-down-apple
The Verge is trash. I’m much happier to read my Apple news here at Macrumors.
[doublepost=1561509198][/doublepost]
You must live in Europe. The US has a very coal-friendly baffoon in the White House. If anything, US production of coal will be ramping up in the near term.
Is it possible to talk about driverless car technology without bashing the president? Have we really gotten to the point where everything HAS to be political? Do you feel better now that you got that shot in and off your chest?
Score: 12 Votes (Like | Disagree)
Glockworkorange Avatar
83 months ago
With energy, neither the customer nor reason decides.
Deciding for or against technology is always political. Unfortunately. Especially a president does not wind out of responsibility, no matter if Dems or Reps.
The story about Apple buying a small, self driving start up warrants a shot at the President of the United States?

Sure, friend, sure.
Score: 3 Votes (Like | Disagree)
Anarchy99 Avatar
83 months ago
I'm curious to see whether Apple will integrate the most environmentally friendly and recource-friendly type of propulsion into its fleet: A hydrogen combustion engine (not a fuel cell). Solar cells can generate the electricity needed to generate it in an environmentally friendly way.
the problem i see with that is the fact is it still uses roughly 4X the electricity to generate that hydrogen, so at that point why do hydrogen in the 1st place the electric car is the more energy conscious option
Score: 2 Votes (Like | Disagree)
Morgenland Avatar
83 months ago
Tim has teamed up with Trump and Goldman Sachs, what makes you think he won't partner with oil companies?
Optimism ;-)
The belief in a better world does not always have to come from naivety.
On the contrary, this time there are simply technical facts, and this time the competition for efficient energy is decided anew in international competition.

Nations that rely on oil and coal will lose. Even guys like Trump are clear about that.
Score: 2 Votes (Like | Disagree)
JetTester Avatar
83 months ago
Politics aside, it won’t matter what Apple does, they are “doomed”.
Score: 2 Votes (Like | Disagree)
nitramluap Avatar
83 months ago
Here's a crazy idea... build a world where you don't need cars much at all. This obsession with cars - autonomous or otherwise - is not healthy.

I'd rather catch a nice train, with a driver up front with skin in the game.
Score: 2 Votes (Like | Disagree)