] [TechWeb June 26, according to foreign media reports, earlier this month, foreign media reported that Apple began looking to acquire autopilot startups Drive.ai, while just over three weeks, Apple confirmed that they had bought out the media this company, but like many times previously acquired Apple currently still have yet to disclose the purchase price.
Apple is outside the media confirmed that they had acquired Drive.ai, from foreign media reports, Apple bought Drive.ai, or people who fancy autopilot aspects of the acquisition process, Apple has hired Drive .ai dozens of engineers, most of them engaged in the work of engineering and product design.
LinkedIn information from the aspect of view, there are already five Drive.ai Apple engineers were hired, one of the four who is currently in a special apple project work, including data, systems and software engineering.
Drive.ai founded in 2015, currently has established only four years, is headquartered in Mountain View, California Silicon Valley, is the use of artificial intelligence to develop automatic driving systems for the automotive, its related technologies can transform the car into autopilot car.
Former vice president Drive.ai and Baidu, chief scientist Andrew Ng quite closely, its founder is Andrew Ng Artificial Intelligence Laboratory at Stanford University students, this company in June 2017 announced Andrew Ng joined the company's board.
Since its founding in 2015, Drive.ai has raised $ 77 million in funding, which two years ago had reached a valuation of $ 200 million, has also had to seek cooperation with Lyft and other companies.
Apple is seeking to acquire Drive.ai news came in three weeks ago, when foreign media that Apple is looking to acquire the company in order to obtain the latter's engineering and technical personnel, so as to promote their own autopilot system in a report research and development, this acquisition is expected to allow Apple to get dozens of people autopilot area.
But foreign media reports, it is unclear whether Apple's acquisition of Drive.ai has been completed, because Apple is still only a small number of companies hired Drive.ai technical personnel.
From a regulatory filing submitted Drive.ai company point of view, Apple's acquisition of them could be completed this week, its general counsel Thomas Sheikh (Thomas Yih) in a regulatory filing that they will close the office on Friday currently the abolition of the CEO and other senior management positions.
In a paper in the California Employment Development Department submitted for 6 on 12 May, Drive.ai also said they plan to close the office in Mountain View on Friday, the abolition of CEO, Chief Financial Officer, Technical Director and other machines including executive positions, but at the time document, Thomas Sheikh also mentioned the situation may change as subsequent events may be beyond their control and understanding of the range.
Although Apple has been confirmed outside the media that they have acquired Drive.ai, but like the previous number of acquisitions, they did not disclose too many details of the acquisition, the purchase price is also not yet been published previously Loup Ventures venture capital firm senior Apple analyst Gene Munster (Gene Munster), Apple's acquisition of Drive.ai had expected to spend no more than $ 200 million, that is, when the valuation of its financing two years ago.
Apple autonomous vehicles research and development is news began to spread in 2016, and its CEO Tim Cook in June 2017 is also the first time admitted that they relent in R & D autopilot system, but Apple R & D projects autopilot Titans there have been twists and turns, in a reorganization earlier this year, this project team laid off more than 200 employees.
Of course, although over layoffs, the team also often have other employees and other employees to join the company's heavy, a few years after Tesla work, served as senior vice president and head of production of the Model 3 Doug Field, in the last year also returned to Apple, joined the Titan project team, while head of Apple Titan project, it is the hardware had already retired executive Bob · Mansfield , known as hardware genius he reappear in 2016, is responsible for Titan project team leader Apple.