Kyle Vogt, the founder and CEO of Cruise, General Motors’ self-driving vehicle unit, resigned on Sunday after a tumultuous period for the company.
Cruise faced setbacks in its robotaxi service, experiencing a series of accidents and injuries. Following a damning report by the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration, California revoked the company’s authorization to operate self-driving taxis in the state, just three weeks after granting approval.
“As CEO, I take responsibility for the situation Cruise is in today,” stated Mr. Vogt in an email to employees. “There are no excuses, and there is no sugarcoating what has happened. We need to double down on safety, transparency and community engagement.”
Last week, GM made changes in Cruise’s leadership by appointing GM General Counsel Craig Glidden and Mo Elshenawy, a Cruise veteran, as co-presidents. The company has not yet announced a new CEO.
Despite the accidents and change in leadership, GM expressed its support for Cruise’s mission to offer affordable self-driving taxi service to customers.
“GM has made a bold commitment to autonomous vehicle technology because we believe in the profound, positive impact it will have on societies, including saving countless lives,” the company stated on Sunday.
Mr. Vogt established Cruise in 2013 and sold it to GM three years later for $581 million in cash and stock options.
GM’s support for self-driving cars is noteworthy as many companies are divesting from investments in this technology. Ford and Volkswagen abandoned their efforts to develop their own self-driving cars after reviewing the results from Tesla and Cruise.
