Google and Apple might be rivals outside of AI assistants, but they’re on friendlier terms when it comes to self-driving cars. Waymo, owned by Google’s parent company Alphabet, has bought Apple’s former autonomous vehicle proving ground in Wittman, Arizona for $220 million.
The purchase was quietly recorded on June 5, when an Apple shell company transferred the facility. Waymo confirmed the deal and said it will use the 5,500-acre facility to simulate road conditions and improve the capabilities of its Driver platform. This will include passenger-only tests, motion control, operational training, and eventual test expansions.
The Phoenix Business Journalspotted the acquisition on June 8.
The ridesharing giant is returning to self-driving car tech after six years.
Waymo already has two real-world testing locations, the 91-acre Castle Proving Ground in Atwater, California as well as the 4,500-acre Transportation Resarch Center in East Liberty, Ohio. The Arizona grounds eclipse both in part due to the sheer variety of testing options, including a freeway section, a four-mile oval circuit, a 35-acre dynamics testing area, and a 115-acre city replica.
The move will help sustain Waymo’s robotaxi expansion. It now serves over 10 cities and just began public rides in a customized electric van. It also comes just weeks after the company suspended freeway service following an incident where one of its cars ignored a construction zone.
What is Project Titan, Apple’s canceled self-driving car project?
Apple wanted to shake up the automotive world
Credit: Apple
The handover helps close a rough chapter in Apple’s history. The company launched Project Titan in 2014 in a bid to make an electric self-driving car. Ideally, this would have created a major new revenue stream at a time when Apple wanted to reduce its dependency on iPhone sales and make its mark in the post-Steve Jobs era.
Work peaked in 2018, when Apple had an estimated 5,000 people working on Titan and was even believed to have teamed with Volkswagen on a modified van to autonomously shuttle employees around its Apple Park campus in Cupertino.
Rumors circulated that Apple was simultaneously too ambitious and lacking focus, however, and that it later scaled back its plans. By 2020, Project Titan was reportedly turned into a self-driving platform that Apple hoped to sell to established automakers.
Apple bought the Arizona proving ground in 2021 for $125 million, the same year when since-denied rumors swirled that Hyundai would jointly develop a car. There were also major executive shuffles, including the departure of project VP Doug Field for Ford (where he still serves as its EV chief) and the hiring of Manfred Harrer, Porsche’s chassis development VP.
Project Titan continued to shrink. By 2022, the effort was supposedly limited to highway-only autonomy and other driver assistance features. Apple is said to have canceled Project Titan outright in February 2024, reassigning most of the employees to AI-related work.
A changing of the guard
Waymo’s purchase of the Apple testing location isn’t a victory when Apple bowed out two years earlier. However, it does reflect Waymo’s commanding lead in self-driving cars and the difficulty of mounting a challenge. Waymo received the first U.S. license for an autonomous car in 2012, and was offering public robotaxi rides by 2020. Apple would have trailed behind, even if Project Titan had been a success.
I’ve driven a lot of EVs lately, and many of them seem obsessed with feeling futuristic at all costs. Some are great tech showcases, but not all of them are particularly easy to live with day to day.
The 2026 Polestar 3 Dual Motor Performance is different because it doesn’t lean into that over-the-top EV personality. It feels like a proper luxury SUV first, and an electric vehicle second.
With 680 horsepower on tap, it’s seriously quick when you want it to be. But the real story is how normal it feels when you’re just going about daily driving.
Pros
Cons
Feels more like a normal luxury SUV than a typical EV
Strong performance
Excellent interior quality
Firm ride
Smaller cargo space than rivals
Expensive options that put the price up quickly
A luxury SUV first, an EV second
It behaves more like a traditional premium SUV than a futuristic EV
The first thing you notice about the 2026 Polestar 3 is how little it tries to act like a typical EV. It doesn’t lean on gimmicks or exaggerated futuristic styling cues.
Instead, it feels like a well-sorted luxury SUV that just happens to be electric. That approach instantly separates it from much of the competition.
The steering feels natural, and the ride is controlled without feeling overly soft or disconnected. It avoids the detached “floating tech pod” sensation that some EVs still struggle with.
Even in Performance trim, it never feels dramatic for the sake of it. Everything is tuned around calmness and everyday usability.
This EV SUV surprised me—it’s packed with space and comfort, even if the drive itself is a bit mellow.
A driving position that feels more focused than expected
Lower, tighter, and more engaging than a large SUV has any right to be
Credit: Adam Gray | How-To Geek
You sit lower in the Polestar 3 than you might expect for a large SUV. That gives it a slightly cocooned driving position that feels more focused than most rivals.
At first, it almost feels like you’re in something smaller and more sports-oriented. That illusion works especially well in everyday driving.
But the reality check comes when you push harder. The weight shows up under braking and reminds you what this really is.
Most functions are handled through a large central touchscreen running Google’s system. It looks excellent, but it takes time to get used to.
Core controls like drive settings and climate adjustments aren’t instantly accessible. It keeps the cabin visually clean but less immediate in use.
There are also quirks like relocated rear window switches and unlabeled steering wheel buttons. They don’t ruin the experience, but they do take time to learn.
BMW has just revealed its all-new 2026 iX3, a sleek electric SUV designed to rival Tesla with cutting-edge tech, bold design, and impressive range.
A surprisingly roomy and practical luxury SUV
Family-friendly space despite the coupe-like profile
Credit: Adam Gray | How-To Geek
Rear seat space is one of the Polestar 3’s strongest points. The five-seat layout allows generous legroom throughout.
Even taller passengers won’t struggle for space in the back. Headroom is slightly limited by the sloping roofline, but it doesn’t feel restrictive.
Cargo space is average for the class, with a shallow load floor and raised cargo area. You also get underfloor storage plus a small frunk for charging cables and small items.
Polestar has removed most physical controls in favor of a screen-first interior. That keeps the design clean but increases the learning curve.
The 14.5-inch display looks sharp and responds quickly, but key functions often take more steps than expected. Even simple adjustments aren’t always immediate.
It reinforces the modern EV feel, but it also highlights the tradeoff. This is where the “normal SUV feel” starts to give way to full EV complexity.
Hyundai’s flagship three-row EV gets a darker Black Ink makeover and the kind of upscale feel you’d normally expect from far pricier SUVs.
What’s new for 2026
A technical overhaul that fixes early shortcomings
Credit: Adam Gray | How-To Geek
The Polestar 3 had a difficult start to life, with delays and early software issues affecting its rollout. This update feels like the version it should have launched as.
The biggest change is the switch to an 800-volt electrical architecture. That brings much faster charging speeds and shorter stops on compatible fast chargers.
All versions also get new batteries and updated in-house motors. The lineup has been simplified into three clearer variants based on powertrain.
The Dual Motor Performance model now produces 680 horsepower. Despite that, it still feels more like a relaxed luxury SUV than a performance machine most of the time.
You should avoid these cars new, but used examples are a bargain.
Pricing and what you actually get for the money
Expensive, but it feels properly equipped before options get involved
Credit: Adam Gray | How-To Geek
The 2026 Polestar 3 starts at £71,540 ($91,000), rising to £79,540 ($101,000) for the Dual Motor and £87,040 ($111,000) for the Performance. That puts it firmly against the BMW iX and Mercedes EQE SUV rather than mainstream electric SUVs.
Standard equipment is strong across the range, with 20-inch alloy wheels, a 14.5-inch portrait touchscreen, a Bowers & Wilkins sound system, and a full suite of driver assistance tech. It feels well-equipped even before options enter the conversation.
Move up to the Dual Motor and you get dual-chamber air suspension and subtle Swedish gold detailing. The Performance model adds significant power, revised chassis tuning, gold Brembo brake calipers, and gold seatbelts.
Where costs rise is options. Paint starts at £1,000 ($1,270), while Bridge of Weir leather upholstery costs around £3,900 ($4,950).
Even so, it feels more complete out of the box than many rivals in this segment. The base price is high, but it doesn’t feel stripped back or artificially entry-level.
Subaru’s new three-row EV packs 420 horspower, real off-road chops, and enough space for the whole family—without feeling boring.
How-To Geek’s take
An EV that finally behaves like a normal car first
Credit: Adam Gray | How-To Geek
The updated Polestar 3 doesn’t try to reinvent what an electric SUV should be. Instead, it focuses on feeling familiar, calm, and easy to live with.
It still has compromises, including a firm ride and heavy touchscreen reliance. But it avoids the overly futuristic feel that turns some drivers away from EVs entirely.
That’s what makes it work. It feels like an electric SUV for people who don’t usually like electric SUVs, and it commits to that idea from start to finish.
To provide the best experiences, we use technologies like cookies to store and/or access device information. Consenting to these technologies will allow us to process data such as browsing behavior or unique IDs on this site. Not consenting or withdrawing consent, may adversely affect certain features and functions.
Functional
Always active
The technical storage or access is strictly necessary for the legitimate purpose of enabling the use of a specific service explicitly requested by the subscriber or user, or for the sole purpose of carrying out the transmission of a communication over an electronic communications network.
Preferences
The technical storage or access is necessary for the legitimate purpose of storing preferences that are not requested by the subscriber or user.
Statistics
The technical storage or access that is used exclusively for statistical purposes.The technical storage or access that is used exclusively for anonymous statistical purposes. Without a subpoena, voluntary compliance on the part of your Internet Service Provider, or additional records from a third party, information stored or retrieved for this purpose alone cannot usually be used to identify you.
Marketing
The technical storage or access is required to create user profiles to send advertising, or to track the user on a website or across several websites for similar marketing purposes.
