General Motors (GM) has announced the closure of its Cruise ‘robotaxi’ business with plans to instead prioritise the development of advanced driver assistance systems on a path to fully autonomous personal vehicles.
GM stated that it will no longer fund Cruise’s robotaxi development work given the considerable time and resources that would be needed to scale the business, along with an increasingly competitive robotaxi market.
The company’s autonomous driving strategy will focus on acquiring the remaining shares of Crusie; GM owns 90% of Cruise’s shares and has agreements with other shareholders that will raise its ownership to more than 97%.
Contingent upon the repurchase of these shares and Cruise board approval, GM will work with the Cruise leadership team to restructure and refocus Cruise’s operations.
GM expects the restructuring to lower spending by more than $1bn (£790m) annually after the proposed plan is completed, expected in the first half of 2025.
Chair and CEO of GM Mary Barra said: “GM is committed to delivering the best driving experiences to our customers in a disciplined and capital efficient manner.
“Cruise has been an early innovator in autonomy, and the deeper integration of our teams, paired with GM’s strong brands, scale, and manufacturing strength, will help advance our vision for the future of transportation.”
