After several comments on the subject, a few people posted that it has the same type of appearance as the Google self-driving vehicle, and we even received a video of another similar looking van in Brooklyn, New York.  Apple Apple camera car on San Francisco streets leads to 'street view' speculation Apple vehicles covered in cameras show company could be working on a Google Street View competitor for Apple Maps A specially equipped van with scanning equipment registered to Apple was spotted on the streets of New York and San Francisco. Apple has been gradually improving its mapping service since it controversially dropped Google Maps as the default maps app for iOS more than two years ago. Apple Maps still lacks a rival to Google’s Street View, but if Apple is planning its own then it faces a daunting task to match Google’s comprehensive coverage. A similar car to the one spotted in San Francisco was also captured on video in New York last year. In the video published on YouTube, you can see a spinning camera system at the rear of the vehicle. Google’s self-driving vehicles are clearly marked, which means this appears to be coming from another company other than Google. As KPIX 5 points out, that doesn’t mean Apple couldn’t partner with an authorized car company to test them initially.
– A minivan driving around San Francisco has fueled speculation that Apple may be creating its own "street view" for Apple Maps, the Guardian reports. Spotted by the Claycord News & Talk blog, the van had 12 cameras mounted along with a lidar sensor, which uses a spinning laser to survey the environment. "When asked about what they are doing, the person sitting in the vehicle would never give an answer," says the blog. What's more, CBS San Francisco reports that the vehicle is leased to Apple. Could they be mounting a rival to Google Maps' popular Street View? After all, Apple is planning to release iOS 9 for iPhones and iPads in the summer, and was rather embarrassed by Apple Maps' poor directions and subpar 3D imagery when it first came out. Yet Apple would need a fleet of vehicles to challenge Google's Street View, the Verge notes. Also, technology analyst Rob Enderle says the van has "too many cameras" for street-viewing and may in fact be a self-driving vehicle. The van also resembles one seen in a Brooklyn YouTube video that describes it as a "self-driving car." Apple isn't among companies with a permit to test self-driving cars, but the van may be used by an Apple partner who does: "You know, they have partnerships with a variety of the carmakers," says Enderle. "Just because they’re leasing the car doesn’t necessarily mean it’s their project." Apple has no comment on the high-tech van or vans—so "it looks like these curious vehicles will remain a mystery for now," says the Verge. (See why Uber may use "robo-cabs.")