GM was set on divorcing Detroit — now it's renewing its vows in an electric way
Turn me on with your electric wheel... (or lack thereof). General Motors will build its new self-driving robotaxi ("Origin") in Detroit. Surprised? GM's Detroit-Hamtramck (not a typo) plant is the auto giant's last remaining Detroit factory. GM was actually going to close it down. Then, in October, it changed course after workers at its US factories went on a 40-day strike (remember?).
Time to invest in your hometown again... Here's GM's plan:
- Cash: GM's dropping $2.2B on the Detroit factory site, and $800M on nearby projects.
- Jobs: Since the plant is no longer closing, people won't lose their jobs. GM's new investment in Detroit combined with Fiat Chrysler's new factory there — which is currently being built — are expected to create 9K jobs. Ford is based in neighboring Dearborn, but is building a self-driving tech hub in Detroit's Corktown.
- Potential: GM has chosen Detroit as the hub of its electric, driverless future. That's right — Detroit is where GM's robo-taxis, electric trucks, and potentially a rumored electric Hummer will be born.
Employees saved GM Detroit... Detroit (aka the "Motor City") is Earth's historic car-making hub. It's where Ford introduced moving assembly lines for car manufacturing in 1913. 100 years later, Detroit filed for bankruptcy with the highest unemployment rate of any major American city. GM's investment in its last Detroit plant is both a symbolic and economic win for the city, made possible by GM's unionized employees, who reversed GM's plans via strike.