However, there is growing industry concern about the viability of autonomous vehicles as a profitable business. GM's investment in Cruise and its share of the company's losses have cost the automaker more than $8 billion since 2016. Despite this, GM continues to operate other noncore businesses that have been launched in recent years, such as GM Energy and the BrightDrop commercial EV unit. The company also remains bullish on its software initiatives and investments in joint ventures for electric vehicles.
Key takeaways:
- General Motors' autonomous vehicle subsidiary, Cruise, is facing a series of challenges following an accident in October. The incident has led to the grounding of Cruise's robotaxi fleet, leadership changes, spending cuts, and layoffs.
- Despite these issues, GM CEO Mary Barra has expressed confidence in Cruise's future, stating that the company is focused on "righting the ship".
- There is growing industry concern about the viability of autonomous vehicles as a profitable business. Some analysts, however, are hopeful that GM can turn Cruise around and refocus on business growth.
- GM's investment in Cruise and its share of the company's losses have cost the automaker more than $8 billion since 2016. The losses have been increasing, including $1.9 billion through the third quarter of this year.