GM’s self-driving car startup unveils EV without steering wheel or pedals

In a statement, Cruise, General Motors’ self-driving car unit said, it has unveiled an electric vehicle without any steering wheel or pedals for use in its planned autonomous ride-sharing service.

Cruise did not disclose when the car will go into production.

The vehicle, named “Cruise Origin”, was developed with Honda Motor Co Ltd following the latter taking a minority stake in Cruise in 2018, in an effort to catch up with rivals in developing a technology with high costs and risks and no market-ready products.

Dan Ammann, Cruise’s Chief Executive Officer, said the vehicle sporting sliding doors will be used for the company’s own ride-hailing service.

Ammann did not elaborate on when the new service will be lanched.

Cruise will need a waiver from U.S. regulators to operate vehicles without human controls.

Cruise was last valued in May 2019 at $19 billion following a $1.15 billion investment round. Previously, it paused a plan of launching a robotaxi service by the end of 2019.

Leave a comment