Apple’s self-driving test fleet has increased its number of self-driving cars to 69 from 68, as seen from an autonomous vehicle permit issued to the company from the California Department of Motor Vehicles, according to MacReports.
The company has also added 16 new driver permits, totaling a current number of 92 driver permits – still down from the company’s 154-permit peak last October.
While Apple lands right in the middle for the sheer amount of autonomous test vehicles and drivers, Waymo and Cruise land at the top, with 615 and 201 vehicles, respectively, and totals of 1,244 and 903 drivers.
Photo: MacReports
While Apple has added just one vehicle and 16 driving permits since May, Waymo has nearly doubled the number of vehicles it has registered for self-driving test permits.
Apple announced last month that an executive from its Apple Watch and Health teams has joined the self-driving project. Apple has also seen a number of self-driving car managers depart this year, with one even joining an autonomous vehicle startup called Cavnue.
In addition, it was announced that Apple could likely look to Taiwan for EV batteries, though it isn’t yet clear who Apple’s suppliers might be.
Apple doubled its road-testing for its self-driving car project in 2020, and as the company’s vehicle comes closer and closer to fruition, we’re likely to see that number continue to increase, too.
