Drive.ai

What you need to know

  • Apple has confirmed the acquisition of autonomous startup Drive.ai.
  • The two companies has been holding talks for a while before Apple finally made the purchase.
  • Dozens of engineers will now move on to Apple's in-house autonomous program.

Apple acquired autonomous driving start-up Drive.ai as it continues to bolster its self-driving program. First reported by Axios, the move was first reported earlier this month but now that it has been finalized, the acquisition was confirmed by Apple.

Founded in 2015 by a group of Standard students, the company quickly expanded into Texas. During its heyday, Drive.ai used a shuttle of orange vans to drive workers around Frisco, Texas and shuttle fans to Arlington, Texas for Dallas Cowboys games.

The startup was once valued at over $200 million before it ran into issues which is when the company began to explore the option of selling. It's not clear how much Apple paid for the company, but it is reported it will pay less than the $77 million Drive.ai raised in venture capital.

All told, Apple is bringing aboard dozens of engineers to its team along with buying its fleet of self-driving cars and other assets. It has been vigorous in expanding its self-driving team over the past few years and this should help add more talent to the team.