As electric vehicle and self-driving spaces continue to heat up with competition, General Motors’ (GM) Cruise and BrightDrop units have decided to collaborate.
Cruise develops self-driving cars that it mostly uses to move people in the so-called robotaxi service. It has begun offering the service in California and Phoenix. Its competitors include Alphabet’s (GOOGL) Waymo. GM controls 80% of Cruise. The other Cruise investors are Walmart (WMT), Honda Motor (HMC), and Microsoft (MSFT). BrightDrop builds electric delivery vans and offers that logistic solutions. It has secured orders for its vans from customers such as Walmart and FedEx (FDX).
Cruise and BrightDrop to Build Self-Driving Electric Vans
Cruise and BrightDrop are collaborating on developing self-driving electric vans, according to a Bloomberg report attributed to people familiar with the matter. The project is still in the preliminary stages, and for Cruise it is not the top priority currently. According to the Bloomberg sources, Cruise will continue to direct most of its resources to its robotaxi business. Other programs will receive additional attention only after Cruise’s primary business is established.
GM’s No-Crash, No-Emission Vision
For GM, Cruise and BrightDrop coming together to build self-driving electric vans would contribute to its vision of building a future with zero crashes and zero emissions. As it works to double its revenue to $280 billion by 2030, GM is counting on Cruise to contribute $50 billion and BrightDrop to provide $10 billion.
Wall Street’s Take
The rest of the Street is cautiously optimistic about the stock, with a Moderate Buy consensus rating. That’s based on 12 Buys, two Holds, and one Sell. The average General Motors price forecast of $61.29 implies 60.4% upside potential to current levels.
Blogger Opinions
TipRanks data shows that financial blogger opinions are 92% Bullish on GM, compared to a sector average of 66%.
Key Takeaway for Investors
Equipping BrightDrop’s vans with a self-driving system could help the unit cut its operating costs and result in a more profitable delivery business for GM.
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