GM's Cruise robotaxi unit relaunches - with human drivers - in Phoenix

By Mike Murphy

Operations ramp back up after San Francisco crash prompted months-long 'pause,' corporate shakeup

After suspending operations last fall, Cruise, the troubled autonomous-driving unit of General Motors Co., plans to gradually return to city streets, starting in Phoenix.

In a blog post Tuesday, Cruise said it is "resuming manual driving to create maps and gather road information in select cities, starting in Phoenix." The company stressed that, for now, the work will involve "using human-driven vehicles without autonomous systems engaged."

Last October, a Cruise driverless robotaxi struck and dragged a pedestrian in San Francisco who had already been hit by another car.

In the aftermath of the incident, California regulators revoked Cruise's license to operate in San Francisco, accusing the company of a cover-up, and Cruise later suspended all operations of its driverless cars. Cruise co-founder and Chief Executive Kyle Vogt resigned in November, and in December nine "key leaders" were dismissed as the company said it would lay off about 24% of its workforce.

In January, Cruise disclosed that it was the subject of investigations by the U.S. Justice Department and the Securities and Exchange Commission, in addition to previously known probes by the California Department of Motor Vehicles, the California Public Utilities Commission and the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration.

A scathing independent report found that Cruise did not intentionally mislead authorities, but cited "numerous" failings including poor leadership, mistakes in judgment and an "us vs. them" mentality toward regulators.

In its blog post Tuesday, Cruise said it is focused on rebuilding trust with regulators and the public, and has redesigned its approach to safety.

During its "operational pause," Cruise said it maintained testing in "complex, dynamic simulated environments" and on closed courses.

Cruise said its next step will be to create high-quality maps and road information - such as speed limits, stop signs and turn lanes - to ensure its future operations "meet elevated safety and performance targets." That first stage will use human drivers, and its cars will not carry public passengers. Once that stage is complete, Cruise said it will reintroduce fully autonomous driving, with human safety monitors behind the wheel.

"Safety is the defining principle for everything we do and will guide our progress through this process," Cruise said.

The company said it intends to ultimately resume driverless robotaxi operations - though it did not give a timeline for that, or say which cities may be next in line for the resumption of operations. Cruise had been operating in San Francisco, Phoenix and Austin, with plans to expand to other cities.

When asked for further details about its resumption of operations, a Cruise spokesperson said the company did not have more to share.

The Cruise business lost about $2 billion for GM in 2023, but CEO Mary Barra has said the automaker is committed to relaunching the unit, albeit with "substantially lower spending."

GM shares (GM) are up 25% year to date, compared to the S&P 500's SPX 9% gain this year.

-Mike Murphy

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04-09-24 1833ET

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