Cruise lays off half its staff as GM absorbs failed robotaxi effort

Between the lines: The majority of retained employees are in engineering or related jobs — a sign of GM's continued investment in technical expertise, the company said.

• At GM, they will now work to expand the capability of its Super Cruise assisted-driving system and eventually, fully self-driving vehicles.
• "While not an easy decision, we are focused on combining efforts with General Motors to accelerate autonomy at scale on personal autonomous vehicles," a company spokesperson said.
• Among those departing are Cruise CEO Marc Whitten and other senior leaders. CTO Mo Elshenawy will stay with the company through April to support the transition and integration, the company said.

The big picture: GM poured nearly $10 billion into the failed robotaxi effort since 2016, but decided to shift gears in December, citing the steep development costs and intense competition for self-driving cars from companies like Waymo and Tesla.

• Once seen as a robotaxi leader, Cruise was engulfed in controversy when a robotaxi it was testing in San Francisco struck and dragged a pedestrian in October 2023.

What to watch: GM, which took a $500 million charge against fourth-quarter earnings, expects further Cruise-related charges in the first quarter, a spokesman said.