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- GM’s Cruise is still moving forward after Ford’s Argo called it quits.
- Cruise is beginning a commercialization push after years of R&D.
At a time when self-driving taxi services like Ford’s Argo are taking off, GM’s Cruise has been in the autonomous vehicle business for a long time, the automaker’s president Mark Reuss told Insider.
In fact, GM’s self-driving outfit is now starting the commercialization phase of its robo-taxi service, after a successful nighttime pilot in San Francisco earlier this year. Cruise is looking to offer rides in Austin and Phoenix, with plans to expand to more cities next year.
At the same time, Cruise continues to develop the autonomous purpose-built Origin vehicle, which executives say opens up more commercial opportunities for the business, such as delivery, as well as shuttle-style ridesharing.
Being commercial does not mean being profitable, however. Running Cruise costs GM about $2 billion a year. Meanwhile, auto industry experts and executives caution that the technology is still in its infancy and is years away from widespread commercialization.
In response to AV skeptics, Reuss said Cruise is able to expand its offerings because the team has maintained its focus.
“I don’t think it’s a good idea — especially with R&D projects — to go in and out of it,” Reuss said. “You lose a ton of momentum.”
GM CEO Mary Barra told investors last month that the company would continue its current spending clip on Cruise. GM and Cruise did not say when the self-driving car unit would start turning a profit.
That’s essentially the opposite approach from crosstown rival Ford, which last month gave up its loss-making self-driving unit, Argo. That set off alarm bells for investors in the autonomous vehicle space, hammering the AV startup’s stocks. The change in valuations is expected to drive a wave of consolidation in the self-driving startup space next year, according to industry analysts.
For Reuss, profitability is not the right marker of success for Cruise, at least not yet. Instead, designers and engineers focused on meeting safety and comfort benchmarks as the service expanded.
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