Crisis at GM: Former Apple manager leaves, developers dismissed
General Motors had decided to stop relying on CarPlay and develop its own software. The team is now losing many employees.
The General Motors headquarters in Detroit.
(Image: dpa, Uli Deck)
The attempts by General Motors (GM), once the world's largest automotive group, to rely on its own software for its electric vehicles with Google's help and to banish Apple's CarPlay have hit a snag: The company has decided to cut numerous jobs among its IT engineers. More than 1,000 permanent employees from the "Software and Services" divisions will be made redundant, including 600 people at the company's "Tech Campus" near Detroit. In total, 1.3 percent of all jobs (excluding contract workers) of the current 76,000 worldwide will be lost, writes the US stock market broadcaster CNBC this week. A former senior Apple manager, Mike Abbott, who was actually supposed to pull up the GM software business, left in March, citing "health reasons".
Preferring its own platform
In spring 2023, GM decided to only equip combustion vehicles with the popular smartphone integrations CarPlay (Apple) and Android Auto (Google). In contrast, the all-electric vehicles, which were described as the future of the Group, were to receive their own software platform, including an infotainment system, maps and charging apps. The first vehicle with the new technology was the Chevrolet Blazer from the 2024 model series. GM hoped to be able to sell services to customers in addition to cars in the future. The strategy of offering vehicle functions on a subscription basis is not new; it is used by BMW and Mercedes, for example.
However, GM did not want to implement the idea entirely on its own, so it brought Google on board as a partner - although Android Auto had previously been dropped. The idea was to integrate the technology deep into its own vehicles, including access to driving aids such as an "autopilot" called "Super Cruise". GM wants to get out of the combustion engine business completely by 2035. iPhone and Android devices can still be used for Bluetooth playback in cars without Android Auto and CarPlay.
"Speed and excellence"
It is unclear whether GM's current problems have anything to do with the change in software strategy. The entire industry is currently in crisis, selling significantly fewer electric vehicles than expected. GM wants to simplify the company "for speed and excellence" and "prioritize the investments that have the most impact", according to a statement to CNBC.
Proprietary software platforms for vehicles can be quite successful. Tesla, for example, has never offered CarPlay support, preferring to use its own operating system, which is popular with customers. Competitor Rivian is pursuing the same strategy because it considers software to be one of its core competencies.
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