General Motors
GM delayed Cruise Origin self-driving vehicle for cost saving
General Motors (GM) has halted plans to push new developments in the Cruise self-driving car unit by indefinitely delaying the new Origin autonomous vehicle.
Instead, it will focus on using the next-gen Chevrolet Bolt for autonomous vehicles and services. This information is from GM CEO Mary Barra’s letter to shareholders which says that the decision will reduce Cruise’s costs.
CNBC reported the change as part of the second quarter earnings which will address around $600 million special investment around this new autonomous vehicle development.
These new developments follows November’s incident when a Cruise vehicle collided with a pedestrian in San Fransisco. Since then the Robotaxi service has been under investigation by the regulators. Afterward, Kyle Vogt resigned from the company. He also reacted to this news and called it disappointing.
“Disappointed to see GM kill the Origin. Would have been amazing for cities” Vogt wrote on X on Tuesday.
Disappointed to see GM kill the Origin. Would have been amazing for cities.
GM repeatedly finds themselves with a 5-10 year head start, but then fumbles the ball, shuts things down, and loses the lead. Anyone remember the EV1?
It’s like someone keeps letting them look into a… pic.twitter.com/GDlL4KQk4S
— Kyle Vogt (@kvogt) July 23, 2024
Aside from its problems, Cruise continues supervised operations in Phoenix, Houston, and Dallas. Additionally, it’s also bringing these test vehicles to Dubai. However, its relaunch in the home state remained uncertain.
GM Cruise Origin Self-Driving Vehicle (Image Source – Cruise)
GM, Cruise, and Honda jointly developed the Origin vehicle for driverless ride-hail service. It will pick up the customers from a location and drive them to a new destination. A ride can be booked using an app and make a payment.
Details about this self-driving vehicle reveal that Cruise Origin has no driver’s seat or steering wheel. It has an all-passenger setup for up to 6 people to ride simultaneously.
The service was planned to launch in central Tokyo in early 2026. It initially planned to start with dozens of Cruise Origins, which should expand to a fleet of 500. However, the new cut may have a wide impact on the three partners.
