(CALIFORNIA)
The autonomous age beckons with carmakers worldwide driving up investments in self-driving technologies.
General Motors (GM) is fully onboard with developments to transform the industry through technology. It announced a $14 million investment in Cruise Automation this week, a driverless tech startup in San Francisco GM bought for a billion dollars last year.
“Self-driving technology holds enormous benefits to society in the form of increased safety and access to transportation. Running our autonomous vehicle program as a start-up is giving us the speed we need to continue to stay at the forefront of development of these technologies and the market applications,” said GM Chairman and CEO Mary Barra.
The money will more than double Cruise Automation’s R&D space.
“We are excited to significantly expand our footprint in California and continue on our rapid growth trajectory,” said Kyle Vogt, CEO of Cruise Automation. “As autonomous car technology matures, our company’s talent needs will continue to increase. Accessing the world-class talent pool that the San Francisco Bay Area offers is one of the many reasons we plan to grow our presence in the state.”
Panorea Avdis, director of the California Governor’s Office of Business and Economic Development, added: “GM’s investment is further proof that California is leading the nation in the design, engineering and deployment of autonomous vehicles.”
