Airbnb seemingly confirms Apple’s self-driving car — and what it reveals about Apple’s AI shift, and Airbnb’s future

An unusual confirmation

· TechRadar

News By Jacob Krol published 16 January 2026

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  • Airbnb’s CTO hiring news seemingly confirms Apple’s long-rumored self-driving car project
  • It adds context to Apple’s broader AI strategy, especially with the Google partnership news
  • It also shows off Airbnb's AI ambitions, which are decidedly focused on the human element

Apple is known for being one of the most secretive companies in tech, rarely confirming projects in development and typically announcing new hardware or software only when the timing is right. Entire initiatives can live – and quietly die – inside Cupertino without ever being publicly acknowledged.

That’s why it’s notable that, after years of rumors surrounding Apple’s work on autonomous vehicles, an unexpected confirmation appears to have come from Airbnb.

As part of a publicly shared internal announcement naming Ahmad Al-Dahle as Airbnb’s new Chief Technology Officer, a memo sent to employees states:

“In 2014, Ahmad created and led Apple’s autonomous technology group, responsible for developing the core AI systems for the company’s self-driving car project.”

(Image credit: Airbnb)

While Apple has never formally confirmed the project, the statement closely aligns with long-standing reporting and offers one of the clearest acknowledgements yet that the effort existed in a serious, sustained way.

The memo also highlights the length and breadth of Al-Dahle’s time at Apple. He joined the company two years before the first iPhone shipped, working on multitouch and display systems, then contributed to the development of the Apple Watch and other hardware initiatives, before eventually leading Apple’s autonomous systems work.

Al-Dahle left Apple in 2020 and joined Meta, focusing on AI and, since 2023, working within Meta’s Generative AI group. There, he helped launch Llama and roll out AI features across Meta’s suite of apps.

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