Whois records, showing an update date for January 8, indicate Apple now owns a trio of automobile related domain names. Apple.car, apple.cars, and apple.auto are registered to the Cupertino company via sponsoring registrar MarkMonitor Inc. The domains are not yet active.
![Apple Registers Trio of Auto Related Web Domains Apple Registers Trio of Auto Related Web Domains](http://www.mactrast.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/01/futuristic-icar-concept-12.jpg)
The domains could be related to CarPlay, but there will naturally be speculation about their possible relation to Apple’s much-rumored electric vehicle plans. Multiple reports over the past year said Apple has a secretive team of hundreds working on an electric vehicle with a prospective 2019 or 2020 shipping date.
The company has been rumored to be mulling over an entry into the auto industry, with a number of reports indicating such a move. It has reportedly been in discussions with a secure Bay Area connected vehicle testing facility, and has met with the California Department of Motor Vehicles to review self-driving vehicle regulations in that state.
The iPhone maker is also reported to be recruiting talent from Tesla, Ford, GM, and other automobile related firms to work on a much-rumored project called “Project Titan.” Electric motorcycle startup Mission Motors was even forced to close down operations after losing employees to the project.
If Apple is working on an automobile – self-driving or not – is likely in the early stages of any such project, and its internal efforts may never show any public-facing results, as the company is known to explore many research projects that never come to fruition. However, the three new domains does pile another log on the still-burning rumor fire indicating an “iCar” may be on the way.