Apple now has 55 self-driving cars in California
San Francisco, May 15: With 55 self-driving cars and 83 drivers, Apple now has the second highest number of self-driving cars in the US state of California where autonomous vehicles are being tested.
The Cupertino-based tech giant had 45 self-driving cars until late March.
"Apple has the second highest number of self-driving cars after General Motor's Cruise, which has 104 vehicles as of now," MacReports reported late on Monday.
"Apple grew from 3 to 45 between April 2017 and March 2018 and now this number has increased to 55," the report added.
Behind Apple is Alphabet's Waymo which currently has 51 self-driving vehicles and Elon Musk-owned Tesla which has 39 cars.
Currently, the California Department of Motor Vehicles (DMV) has provided permits to 53 companies for self-driving cars that include safety drivers, resulting in a total of 409 vehicles and 1,573 safety drivers in the US.
As of now, the DMV has not issued any permits for complete driverless testing because for that to happen, companies must have to have a pre-testing of the vehicles in controlled conditions.
"The DMV is currently reviewing two driverless testing permit applications," a DMV spokesperson reportedly told TechCrunch.
Code-named "Project Titan", Apple's self-driving programme's fleet is reportedly made up of Lexus RX450h SUVs, each of which is fitted with huge racks of LIDAR and radar sensors as well as cameras.
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Allahabad HC orders probe into 'reinstatement' of teacher in UP's Barabanki
Lucknow (PTI): The Lucknow Bench of the Allahabad High Court on Friday ordered a probe by the special task force (STF) into alleged irregularities in the rejoining of a teacher at City Intermediate College in Barabanki, observing that the reinstatement appeared to be prima facie illegal.
The court also directed the recovery of the salary paid to the teacher during the disputed period.
A bench of Justice Rajeev Singh passed the order on a petition filed by the college management committee. The court expressed doubts over the roles of the District Inspector of Schools (DIOS), Barabanki, the college principal and the teacher concerned and hence, directed a detailed inquiry into the matter.
Taking note of alleged manipulation of records and misleading submissions, the court ordered the immediate transfer of the Barabanki DIOS to ensure a fair probe. It also directed the initiation of disciplinary proceedings against the then joint director of education of the Ayodhya division.
In its order, the court found that the teacher, Abhay Kumar, was initially appointed as an assistant teacher in 2018 but joined an Eklavya Model Residential School in Chhattisgarh as a lecturer in June 2024 without obtaining permission from the management. His subsequent request to retain the lien was rejected.
Despite this, he was allowed to rejoin the Barabanki College in September 2025 on the directions of the joint director of education and the DIOS, and was even paid the salary for October 2025. The court termed the rejoining "wholly illegal" and lacking any legal basis.
The bench also expressed concern over lapses in communication within the education department and directed the Uttar Pradesh chief secretary to ensure that official orders are communicated through email and WhatsApp as well, to prevent disputes.
The matter is next listed for hearing on May 28 when a compliance report is sought.
