He can't go to places himself and needs a driver to bring him to places instead. He lives in a residence home. He doesn't seem that smart.
I think it's an interesting question, as it gets to a few of the roots of the autistic situation as I see it. I finally self-diagnosed at age 68. Looking at what I accomplished in my life is only one way to evaluate my intelligence.
I am not kidding when I say that I knew two things as a young child: 1) I see and understand things that others either can't or won't. 2) I am not really a member of the human race.
I have passed through several distinct periods in my life. By the time I was 25, I had probably spent 10 years as a basket case and 15 years in shutdown. Around then, simple economics jolted me into action. I was still basically shut off socially, but determined to concentrate on becoming valuable to my employer. Within 10 years of that, I was managing a cutting-edge and mission-critical computer complex for the military (contractor.)
Back up to when I was in 8th grade where I found speech and debate. When still in 9th grade, my coach petitioned the NFL to have me transferred to the upper high school division for the official competitions. He was right; I didn't win as often up there, but still far outstripped all my peers in winning. Passed into high school, where they said that, if you wanted to participate in speech and debate, you had to dress in one of those weird smock-and-cap outfits and wander through the bleachers selling food and drinks. It wasn't a matter of being too proud; the ridicule that the S&D crowd got from the jocks and everyone else was WAY beyond what I could handle. Couldn't keep my head on straight, couldn't find my way back to the reloading station. That was the end of that brief twinkling.
In other words... by the time I was 35, anyone who knew or observed me during at least half of those years would have had to say that I just didn't seem that smart. Look at the resume, impressive. Talk to those who knew and observed me, well you know the drill... flat tones, dead features, no social interest. Certainly not a candidate for a rewarding social experience.
Give your friend time and love; if they decide to come out and play, they may surprise you. Intelligence is a strange concept, but the old thing about books and covers still holds.