That Apple and Google would have an interest in cars is not surprising; the automobile of 2016 is as much a tech product as it is a vehicle. That trend is only accelerating as self-driving technology continues to mature. But over the past few days, we've seen a flurry of speculation over the automotive projects at two of the world's biggest tech companies.

Let's start with Google. The Mountain View-based search giant has been working on its autonomous transport project since 2009—which may as well be forever in tech years. It started with modified Toyotas and Lexuses, then more recently with electric vehicles of its own design. The high-profile nature of Google (and therefore its car project) has arguably helped get people to take the prospect of autonomous driving more seriously than they otherwise might have. In 2012 when Gov. Jerry Brown signed into law legislation in California to allow testing of autonomous vehicles on the road, he did so at Google's HQ.

But it has not been smooth sailing for Google's car project; at various times it has been linked to partnerships with Uber, Ford, General Motors, and Fiat-Chrysler. However, only the last of those collaborators has panned out; Ford is going at it alone to build an autonomous ride-sharing vehicle in 2021, and Uber is working with Volvo on a similar vehicle (and with a similar time frame). Despite having seven years of experience—and 1.5 million miles—under its belt, it's possible that Tesla's approach of using fleet learning that leverages tens of thousands of vehicles has given the young upstart a big advantage.

On Monday, Bloomberg reported that Google's car project is beset by frustration and a lack of focus as it loses "its first-mover advantage to other companies pursuing more practical, less-ambitious self-driving car services." Several long-time veterans have moved on recently, possibly after butting heads with John Krafcik, who was brought in as CEO of the car project last year.

Meanwhile, we've written very little about Apple's possible car plans here at Ars, but the idea of an Apple Car wasn't actually as outlandish as it might seem. The company has enormous cash reserves that need something to do, and outsourcing production to a firm like Steyr or Valmet is something that even long-time automakers like Porsche have done in the past.

Unlike Google's well-publicized automotive adventure, though, concrete details about Apple's "Project Titan" are extremely hard to come by. Last February, we heard that Apple had several hundred people working on the project, and battery maker A123 sued Apple for poaching some of its staff. Elon Musk even referred to Apple as the "Tesla Graveyard" when asked whether he was scared of Cupertino muscling in on his turf.

Beyond that, there have been plenty of rumors about Apple's plans but nothing concrete. On Friday, The New York Times reported that Project Titan is in trouble, however, as there are engineering layoffs and a scaling back of the project's scope. According to the Times, Apple is no longer considering building its own car, perhaps intending to partner with an existing automaker instead. We shall have to watch this space to see if that approach works better in Cupertino than it has in Mountain View.