Despite spending billions of dollars on the project in the past 10 years, Apple has scrapped efforts to build its own self-driving electric car. Social media users have been mercilessly mocking the tech giant, which is reportedly set to fire employees who worked on the ambitious scheme. Taking to X, one joked that Apple cancelled the car'after realizing it would require windows', in a nod to the software from rival tech firm Microsoft. Another user said that the'charging solution proved a bit inconvenient' with a shot of an upside-down car with a charger plugged into it. Yet another posted an image of the'original Apple car' – driven by Lowly Worm the fictional earthworm from the classic 1960s children's books.

These self-driving concept vehicles are like nothing you've seen before BMW has unveiled its vision for a self-driving electric crossover SUV and, if it actually ends up being a lot like the concept version, it should be a pretty cozy place to hang out. The BMW Vision iNext is a concept vehicle for now. But BMW executives said they plan to put something like it into production in 2021. The car was unveiled inside the belly of a cargo plane at John F. Kennedy International Airport in New York. Inside, BMW's executives displayed working versions of some of the technologies being considered for the car, including touch sensitive fabrics and interactive projections.

The future of self-driving cars may arrive sooner than you think, if General Motors gets its way. The Detroit-based automaker on Thursday revealed its plans for a fully-autonomous, electric car to hit the road by 2019. GM says the automobile is "the first production-ready vehicle built from the start to operate safely on its own, with no driver, steering wheel, pedals or manual controls." Called the Cruise AV, an ode to Cruise Automation, the startup GM purchased in 2016 and converted into its autonomous vehicle division, the car will be GM's fourth-generation self-driving car following a version of the Chevy Bolt introduced late last year. But despite its anticipated release date, the Cruise AV is not guaranteed to hit the streets by next year.

Lyft likes to set lofty goals for itself. Last year, one of the ride-hail company's founders went on record predicting that "a majority" of Lyft's trips will be in self-driving cars by 2021. Now Lyft says it wants to be less of a pollutant, too. The company is setting a goal for itself that all of the electric, autonomous vehicles on its platform will be powered by "100% renewable energy."

Money keeps pouring in from companies trying to perfect the self-driving car. The latest eye-popping transaction: Intel announced Monday that it was buying Israeli company Mobileye for $15.3 billion. Mobileye's systems, which are used by 27 carmakers, depend on specialized cameras to sense a car's surroundings on the road. It's the tech behind the emergency braking and lane assistance systems that are becoming more common in new vehicles. The acquisition shouldn't come as a huge surprise, since the two companies have been working together with BMW since last year to create a fully autonomous car by 2021.