General Motors Abandons Robotaxi Business, Shifts Focus to Autonomous Technology

As companies like Waymo and Tesla plan to expand their robotaxi offerings across the country, General Motors (GM) is taking a different approach. The largest automaker in the United States is shifting gears to reverse its investment in the robotaxi business, which has been plagued by issues and accidents.

An email obtained by TechCrunch revealed that GM is cutting nearly half of the workforce currently at Cruise, the autonomous vehicle company that GM had invested $10 billion in. The layoffs, announced by Craig Glidden, Cruise’s president and chief administrative officer, will affect nearly 1,000 employees, including Cruise’s CEO, Marc Whitten, who will leave the company this week. Other executives, such as chief safety officer Steve Kenner, global head of public policy Rob Grant, and chief technologist Mo Elshenawy, are also departing.

The layoffs come as GM completed a full acquisition of Cruise, bringing the one-time startup completely under its roof. With GM’s ownership, the company is changing its focus from the robotaxi business to autonomous technology for personal vehicles, specifically its Super Cruise system, which is installed in many of its newer models.

GM’s shift to Super Cruise is two-fold. Firstly, the company believes that the features can generate significant revenue. Following its most recent earnings call, GM forecasted that autonomous options in consumer cars could generate up to $2 billion in total annual revenue within five years, with the company charging a monthly or annual fee for access to the features.

Secondly, the robotaxi business has been a financial burden for GM. The company has been investing large sums into the service, which has yet to take off, and has also been plagued by accidents and injuries. In 2023, a Cruise robotaxi struck a pedestrian and dragged them 20 feet, resulting in serious injuries. The company attempted to downplay the incident, filing a false report with the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration during its investigation.

Cruise robotaxis have also made headlines for their erratic behavior. In 2022, about 20 of the vehicles got into a standoff that blocked San Francisco traffic for nearly two hours. Another vehicle became tangled in the city’s light rail line, causing delays. A New York Times report found that Cruise vehicles required human intervention at least once for every 2.5 to five miles driven, making them far from self-driving status.

If nothing else, GM’s decision to abandon the robotaxi business should bring relief to San Franciscans, who can now breathe a sigh of relief knowing that there is one fewer autonomous vehicle on their city streets.