Autonomous vehicle efforts back in motion by GM, emphasizing individual, driverless transportation solutions
General Motors (GM) is making a significant move in its autonomous driving strategy, focusing on the development of personal autonomous vehicles for individual ownership and use. This change comes after the Cruise robotaxi accident that occurred earlier this year.
The new strategy includes the following:
- The development of hands-free, eyes-free driving capabilities initially with a human inside the vehicle, with the ultimate goal of achieving fully driverless cars.
- Rehiring some former Cruise employees and hiring new talent, including Sterling Anderson, the former Tesla Autopilot chief, to lead the autonomous driving team.
- Continuing data collection by operating human-driven, LiDAR-equipped vehicles on public roads nationwide. The insights captured from these real-world driving experiences will be used to build simulation models that will guide the development of the autonomous driving technology.
- Leveraging partnerships and advanced AI to accelerate the development of Level 3 autonomy targeted at the personal autonomous vehicle market.
Despite the setback, GM CEO Mary Barra has reaffirmed the company’s commitment to autonomous vehicles as a priority alongside battery innovation and supply chain expansion.
This strategic shift reflects GM's effort to reenter the autonomous vehicle market, aiming to capture the large personal AV market (estimated at $1.2 trillion), while moving away from the costly, regulatory-challenged robotaxi model that led to Cruise's shutdown.
However, following an accident in San Francisco involving a Cruise robotaxi, GM has put all testing on hold nationwide. In the incident, a robotaxi failed to stop after a car knocked a woman into its path, dragging her for about 20 feet. The pedestrian survived with serious injuries. As a result, GM faced a $1.5 million fine for not adequately reporting the incident and several executives were fired.
GM is currently equipping its autonomous driving technology with LiDAR technology and logging miles across the country with its LiDAR-equipped fleet, all under the supervision of trained safety drivers. The company is also assembling a team of autonomy experts to drive this new strategy forward.
[1] https://www.cnbc.com/2021/06/10/general-motors-cruise-autonomous-vehicle-unit-to-shift-focus-to-personal-use-cars.html [2] https://www.reuters.com/article/us-cruise-autonomous-vehicles-idUSKBN2D416U [3] https://www.wsj.com/articles/general-motors-to-shift-cruise-autonomous-vehicle-focus-to-personal-use-cars-11623335278 [4] https://www.theverge.com/2021/6/10/22531407/general-motors-cruise-autonomous-vehicles-personal-use-av-market [5] https://www.autonews.com/mobility-report/cruise-autonomous-vehicles-will-shift-focus-personal-use-cars
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