Episode 254 | Autonomy Markets: GM Shuts Down Cruise, Uber’s Autonomy Dilemma and Torc’s Future

The Road to Autonomy

This week on Autonomy Markets, Grayson Brulte and Walter Piecyk discuss the dramatic turn of events that led GM to abruptly shut down Cruise, just days before a planned driver-out launch in Houston. The decision made by CEO Mary Barra, reportedly stems from fears of another incident.

With the decision to pull the plug on Cruise, GM burnt $9 billion of investment dollars with nothing to show for it. The Cruise shutdown highlights the ongoing challenges of how traditional automakers are approaching autonomy. As traditional automakers falter, Waymo and Tesla continue to accelerate as the market is beginning to consolidate around them as the leaders in robotaxis.

As we look to 2025, more consolidation is likely on the way, with Daimler Truck potentially scaling back their in-house autonomous trucking program (Torc Robotics). Then there is Uber which is struggling to define their autonomy narrative to the market. What moves do they make to calm market jitters?

Episode Chapters

0:00 GM Pulls the Plug on Cruise

7:57 Uber & Lyft in the Era of Autonomy

16:47 Zoox and Amazon. What is the Path Forward?

22:45 Could Daimler Truck Follow GM and Shutter Torc Robotics?

29:25 Amazon and Autonomy

31:06 Walmart

32:15 Cybercab in 2026?

33:10 Aurora

33:51 Next Week

Recorded on Thursday, December 12, 2024

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