GM announces additional investment in Cruise
General Motors is acquiring SoftBank Vision Fund 1’s equity ownership stake in self-driving company Cruise for $2.1 billion and separately will make an additional $1.35 billion investment in Cruise, replacing a previous commitment made by the fund in 2018. GM acquired a majority ownership stake in the company in 2016.
Last month Cruise became the first company to offer fully driverless rides to the public in a major U.S. city and it announced a partnership with Mobilitas Insurance around commercial insurance coverage.
“We are extremely pleased to announce GM is leveraging the strength of its balance sheet to capitalize on the opportunity to increase its equity investment in Cruise and advance our integrated autonomous vehicle strategy. We continue to believe our investment represents an extraordinary opportunity for creating long-term shareholder value. Our increased investment position not only simplifies Cruise’s shareholder structure, but also provides GM and Cruise maximum flexibility to pursue the most value-accretive path to commercializing and unlocking the full potential of AV technology.” – GM Chair and CEO Mary Barra.
“GM’s increased investment illustrates its commitment to Cruise and our mission of creating a better world by deploying driverless cars at scale. Cruise will continue to operate as it does today – an independent company working alongside GM in a flexible, collaborative partnership. Cruise and GM’s continued partnership as well as GM’s financial strength and manufacturing scale are significant enablers and key differentiators for Cruise as we accelerate our progress and enter this next phase of commercialization.” – Kyle Vogt, Cruise CEO.