Apple Inc. AAPL has ramped up the hiring of drivers registered for testing autonomous driving features on public roads in California.
According to the California DMV, Apple has increased the number of drivers for testing its self-driving vehicles to 201 while keeping its fleet size steady at 67 as of March 17, according to macReports.
Amazon.com Inc's AMZN Zoox currently has the most drivers, while General Motors GM Cruise has the most vehicles with a 709 vehicle-wide fleet, according to macReports.
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Since the beginning of 2023, Apple reported one collision for its autonomous vehicles tested in California on February 21, 2023.
A test vehicle in manual driving mode was making a U-turn when the rim made contact with the curb. The report said that the test vehicle suffered damage to the front rim.
Apple's self-driving dreams go as far back as the early 2000s, and it was reported that Apple applied for and published about 248 automobile-related patents after 2000. Apple hasn't applied for a driverless permit yet, according to macReports.
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