GM Cuts Half of Cruise Workforce as Robotaxi Program Ends

2025-02-05 companies

Detroit, Wednesday, 5 February 2025.
General Motors halts Cruise’s robotaxi business, laying off 50% of staff, shifting focus to personal autonomous vehicles after costly investments and market challenges.

Major Workforce Reduction

General Motors (NYSE: GM) announced on February 3, 2025, that it would lay off approximately 50% of its Cruise division workforce [1][3]. The layoffs affect over 1,000 employees from a workforce of nearly 2,300 as of late 2023 [5][7]. The restructuring comes after GM’s completion of its acquisition of GM Cruise Holdings LLC, making it a wholly-owned subsidiary [3]. Several key executives are departing, including CEO Marc Whitten, Chief Human Resources Officer Nilka Thomas, and Chief Safety Officer Steve Kenner, while CTO Mo Elshenawy will remain until April 2025 [1][3].

Financial Impact and Strategic Shift

The decision follows GM’s significant investment of over $10 billion in Cruise since its acquisition in 2016 [1][8]. GM expects to save up to $1 billion annually by ending the Cruise robotaxi development program [3]. The affected employees will receive comprehensive severance packages, including 60 days’ notice, eight weeks of base pay, and additional compensation based on tenure [1]. This strategic shift comes after Cruise faced major setbacks, including the suspension of its operating permits following a critical incident in October 2023 [5][8].

Future Direction

GM is pivoting from commercial robotaxi operations to focus on developing personal autonomous vehicles [1][5]. The majority of retained employees are in engineering or related positions, signaling GM’s continued commitment to autonomous technology development [4]. According to Dave Richardson, GM’s Senior Vice President of Software and Services Engineering, ‘By combining the specialized technology and talent at Cruise with our team developing Super Cruise, we’ll have the ability to accelerate our work on both assisted-driving and autonomous driving’ [2].

Sources

General Motors robotaxi closure