Cruise was once an autonomous driving rock star, but their fall from grace continues as they’re eliminating 24% of their workforce. The move follows a serious accident in October, which saw one of their vehicles hit and drag a pedestrian.
The incident pushed Cruise to suspend operations and conduct a thorough review. That process continues, but the company said the layoffs reflect their “new future,” which will see them have a “more deliberate go-to-market path, meaning less immediate need for field, commercial operations and corporate staffing.”
Despite this, Cruise said they remain committed to commercialization and will “approach it within a thoughtful and achievable time frame – with safety as our north star.”
More: Cruise CEO Quits In Wake Of Safety-Related Self-Driving Shutdown
Cruise President Mo ElShenawy wrote a letter to employees saying, “We knew this day was coming, but that does not make it any less difficult” as “we are making staff reductions that will affect 24% of full-time Cruisers, through no fault of their own.” While layoffs are never fun, especially around the holidays, those impacted will remain on the company’s payroll through February 12, 2024 (longer for senior employees) and receive a bonus for 2023. They’ll also receive healthcare and retirement benefits as well as career and, if necessary, immigration support.
Besides talking about the layoffs, ElShenawy said “We are simplifying and focusing our efforts to return with an exceptional service in one city to start with and focusing on the Bolt platform for this first step before we scale.” He went on to say, “We are ceasing work on the Origin MY24, but not losing sight of our work on future programs.” However, plans to expand into more than a dozen new cities aren’t going to happen as the company is focused on “delivering the improvements to our tech and vehicle performance that will build trust in our AVs.”
On top of the cuts to the full-time workforce, Cruise said they have “ended additional assignments of contingent workers.” Furthermore, Reuters recently reported nine higher-ups have been let go including Chief Operating Officer Gil West, Chief Legal and Policy Officer Jeff Bleich, and Senior Vice President of Government Affairs David Estrada.
