General Motors recently announced they will cut $5.5 billion in spending over the next three years with cost-saving measures in manufacturing, purchasing and administration. Speaking to Wall Street analysts, General Motors (GM) stated the savings made will be used to reallocate funds to help develop new technology and capabilities to better compete in future markets such as driver-less cars.
The company intends to begin working on a fleet of self-driving Chevrolet Volt plug-in hybrid cars at the Detroit headquarters next year.
According to GM’s CEO, Mary Barra, the company intends to disrupt the auto industry with cutting-edge forms of mobility. Mark Reuss, Product Development Chief, echoed the sentiment and stated the latest move by GM was not just for the press.
GM intends to challenge others on the self-driving front as Google continues to develop a fleet of 48 self-driving vehicles and both Apple and Uber continue their own work in the self-driving space.
Earlier this year, GM stated their intent to increase US manufacturing by $1B and their intention to move production of their pickup truck axles out of Mexico to Michigan.
Now, just seven months later, it appears that GM will be curbing that ambition and shifting focus to new technology. It is uncertain whether this will compensate for the cut in manufacturing and purchasing and put GM in a better position for the future. Some have argued the shift in focus is good for the company and the US as the US has long been a leader in technology development.
Earlier this summer, Ford Motor Company announced their decision to manufacture the new Ford Focus in China instead of the US.
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