More Firms Testing Autonomous Vehicles in Calif.

California has awarded a new license to test autonomous vehicles to Drive.ai, a tech firm specializing in artificial intelligence for self-driving cars, the Wall Street Journal reported.

The company, located in Mountain View, Calif., drew $12 million in venture funding last year, according to the newspaper. Drive.ai is focused on advancing software that allows the vehicle to train itself to make the right driving decisions. The company becomes the 13th to be issued a license to test self-driving cars on public roads in California. 

In March, California similarly issued such a license to Zoox Inc., located in Palo Alto, Calif.

The other 11 companies testing autonomous vehicles in the state are Volkswagen Group of America, Mercedes-Benz, Google, Delphi Automotive, Tesla Motors, Bosch, Nissan, Cruise Automation, BMW, Honda and Ford.

Since General Motors' acquisition of San Francisco-based Cruise Automation, venture capitalists and auto industry leaders alike have shown greater interest in Silicon Valley firms specializing in robotics and artificial intelligence.