Mysterious photo could reveal Apple Car proving ground

Photo: Google Earth
What do crop circles have to do with Apple? No, it’s not 1996 — when an Apple laptop was used to save the world from aliens in Independence Day.
Instead, a new report claims that an image on Google Earth depicts a former Fiat Chrysler-owned facility in Arizona that Apple may be using to test its autonomous vehicles. The satellite image shows a “proving ground” with urban street configurations, such as crosswalks and intersections, which would be necessary for putting a self-driving vehicle through its paces.
Despite Apple’s Project Titan previously appearing to have stalled, the report claims that Apple has been busily recruiting automotive test engineers and technicians in Arizona — suggesting that its autonomous vehicle research is far from over. The Jalponik report suggests that Apple is now focused on the underlying technology that can make an autonomous car drive.
While Apple hasn’t confirmed or denied that it is leasing the space in Arizona, Jalopnik notes that the previously inactive site is now back up and running. The site is leased to a company named Route 14 Investment Partners LLC, registered to an entity called the Corporation Trust Company, where Apple has a dropbox.
Others with knowledge of the matter, including the former manager of the Fiat Chrysler proving grounds, said that, “I’m not answering this question,” — when asked about Apple’s involvement.
Autonomous car project is up and running
This isn’t the first time we’ve heard about a renewed interest in Apple’s autonomous vehicles as of late. This month, Apple reignited rumors about its Apple Car ambitions by publishing an online research paper — describing how neural networks can be used to help improve accuracy in LiDAR technology, in which pulsed laser light is used to measure the distance of objects.
Apple’s autonomous car project recently turned up in the news again after the company’s self-driving car was spotted by the CEO of a self-driving car start-up called Voyage.