GM Bets AI and Computing Will Speed Development and Bring Hands-free Driving to Escalade IQ in 2028
WHO:
TechCrunch - General Motors (GM) plans to use a fourth-generation electric-vehicle platform to compete with Tesla, Rivian, and Chinese automakers.
CNBC - GM CEO Mary Barra, Chief Product Officer Sterling Anderson, President Mark Reuss, and other executives discussed the company’s technology plans at its “GM Forward” event.
CNBC - Sterling Anderson, a former Tesla executive, oversees GM’s latest technology transformation.
IJR - GM plans to introduce eyes-off highway driving in the Cadillac Escalade IQ and later expand it to high-volume pickups and SUVs.
WHAT:
Fortune - GM’s virtual battery testing examined different chemical combinations and temperature-cycling approaches, among other variables, across more than 300,000 LMR battery-pack configurations.
Fast Company - GM said its decade of work on LMR batteries has not yet put the chemistry into any of its vehicles on the road.
Fortune - GM’s new central computer is planned to spread beyond the Escalade IQ to its highest-volume gas SUVs and trucks, three-row crossovers, and fourth-generation EVs.
Fortune - GM said its new platform’s battery pack and drive units will be 20% more compact.
Fortune - GM said its fourth-generation EV platform will carry an updated version of Super Cruise.
Fortune - GM’s autonomous-driving technology is also planned for gas-powered full-size SUVs and light-duty pickups; preproduction vehicles are testing on closed courses.
Fortune - GM said hundreds of data-collection vehicles and opted-in retail customers supply real-world driving data for autonomous-system training.
Fortune - GM Fleet represents about 20% of the company’s annual sales.
Fortune - GM said simulating more than 300,000 battery designs required 300 million CPU hours—the equivalent of one computer running continuously for 34,000 years.
Fortune - GM’s battery team progressed from its first pack concept to formal program approval in one month.
Fortune - GM’s self-driving software logs more than 3 billion simulated miles per day, compared with about 1 million real-world miles per month.
Fortune - GM plans to make its lithium manganese-rich batteries with LG Energy Solution at their Ultium Cells joint venture in Spring Hill, Tennessee.
Fortune - GM’s LMR cells use roughly 30% to 40% nickel, compared with about 85% in current high-nickel cells, according to battery engineer Andy Oury.
Fortune - GM’s $900 million Battery Cell complex in Warren, Michigan, is due to become fully operational later this year and ramp toward producing a couple thousand cells daily.
Fortune - GM said its PlantBrAIn factory platform has moved battery packs through assembly 30% faster; Gen 4 vehicles will check their own wiring on the production line.
Fortune - GM said autonomous-driving technology is being tested in preproduction vehicles on closed courses, and it is developing eyes-off highway driving for gas-powered full-size SUVs and light-duty pickups.
Fortune - Current Super Cruise customers have logged more than 1.2 billion hands-free miles.
Fortune - GM said software improvements identified in training can reach the road within a single day.
Fortune - GM’s OnStar Fleet has more than 2.4 million subscribers, which the company said is twice its nearest competitor.
Fortune - GM said it is investing more than $16 billion in U.S. research and development and manufacturing this year, following about $7.6 billion in EV-related charges last year.
CNBC - GM said the new vehicle computer will debut in the $130,000 Cadillac Escalade IQ.
The Drive - GM’s AI tools reduced aerodynamic testing from 60 hours to 60 seconds and structural analysis from months to hours, Anderson said.
The Drive - GM’s new central-computer architecture is expected to use 30% less wiring; a spokesperson said the computer has the processing power of 40 laptops.
The Drive - GM’s forthcoming electric motors are expected to have 40% fewer parts than current Ultium motors, while future EVs are projected to deliver 20% more range per kilowatt-hour. The article also reported that LMR batteries have 33% more energy density than LFP batteries.
The Drive - Barra did not commit to passing anticipated cost savings on to buyers, noting that GM already sells a wide range of vehicles for $30,000 or less at a profit.
TechCrunch - GM’s fourth-generation EV platform will include a new central computer and electrical architecture.
CNBC - GM aims to reduce vehicle development time from a traditional four to five years to roughly two years, but did not provide a timeline for achieving the target.
CNBC - GM wants to offer “personal autonomy,” or eyes-off highway driving, beginning with the Cadillac Escalade IQ EV.
CNBC - GM says next-generation vehicles, including EVs and internal-combustion vehicles, will have 40 times the computing power and up to 50% faster cellular connectivity than prior systems.
CNBC - GM expects the computing improvements to support over-the-air updates, onboard diagnostics, AI, and automated-driving features.
CNBC - GM’s forthcoming EVs are expected to be 25% more aerodynamic, 15% lighter, and to have more compact electric motors and battery packs.
CNBC - GM virtually tested more than 300,000 battery designs using its lithium manganese rich (LMR) chemistry before constructing a physical prototype. Anderson said LMR will be the exclusive battery technology for GM’s fourth-generation EVs.
IJR - GM’s eyes-off driving plan is part of a broader effort to monetize vehicle software and modernize development; the technology faces safety and liability questions, and GM has not set a timeline for wider rollout.
WHERE:
The Drive - GM’s planned unified OnStar app will replace the Chevrolet, Cadillac, Buick, and GMC iOS and Android apps, support both gas and electric vehicles, and let families track vehicles and people through device permissions, including Find My integration.
The Drive - The in-vehicle OnStar AI assistant is planned to appear first in the 2027 Cadillac Lyriq, then expand across GM’s gas and electric vehicle lineup.
CNBC - GM’s “GM Forward” event took place in downtown Manhattan, New York.
CNBC - GM plans to begin deploying the new vehicle computer in the Cadillac Escalade IQ EV, then extend it to other models.
WHEN:
The Drive - GM plans to launch its new unified OnStar mobile app next year.
The Drive - GM’s new in-vehicle OnStar AI assistant is planned to launch later this year.
TechCrunch - The fourth-generation EV platform is set to debut in the Cadillac Escalade IQ in 2028.
CNBC - GM aims to introduce eyes-off highway driving in the Escalade IQ by 2028.
CNBC - GM has said it wants to use LMR batteries in full-size electric vehicles, including the Chevrolet Silverado and Escalade IQ, beginning in 2028.
WHY:
CNBC - GM’s software and AI initiatives are intended to accelerate development, improve vehicle capabilities, streamline operations, and help the company compete with Chinese automakers amid a tougher U.S. market.
CNBC - Anderson said faster development can produce vehicles sooner and systems that are “far more performant.”
CNBC - Reuss said GM continues developing EVs and reducing battery costs so the company will be ready when the U.S. market is prepared to adopt EVs in large numbers.
HOW:
Fortune - GM’s digital vehicle-development process includes weekly “tall pole” reviews focused on whatever is slowing a project.
Fortune - GM said its upcoming OnStar app will add cameras that automatically record incidents, and that GM cannot access those recordings.
Fortune - GM’s autonomous-driving software trains largely through self-play, with software versions simulating both a merging car and surrounding traffic; GM retained many methods from its Cruise robotaxi unit.
Fortune - GM said its fourth-generation EV platform will include an updated version of Super Cruise.
Fortune - GM said Gen 4 vehicles will check their wiring on the assembly line.
The Drive - Drivers will be able to ask the in-vehicle assistant in natural language to explain a previous vehicle warning or alert; GM says it will use vehicle-system data to interpret it. Live human assistance through OnStar will remain available.
The Drive - The OnStar app’s AI is intended to handle requests such as starting and warming a vehicle 15 minutes before the user’s scheduled departure.
The Drive - GM plans a unified OnStar mobile app for Chevrolet, Cadillac, Buick, and GMC vehicles, with family vehicle tracking and AI features. A new in-vehicle OnStar AI assistant is planned to answer questions about vehicle alerts using natural language and vehicle-system data.
CNBC - GM is developing a vehicle-development approach combining enterprise AI and virtualization; the company said its concurrent-engineering model is intended to speed innovation and scale technologies across its lineup.
CNBC - Anderson said GM’s systems will use multiple sensor types to visualize more than a strictly camera-based system.
CNBC - Anderson cited GM’s more than 100 years in the automotive industry and 30 years of OnStar experience as assets for developing AI tools using engineering, manufacturing, and product data.
(UPDATED October 22, 2026 22:11 UTC)
General Motors is reshaping its technology and electric-vehicle plans to compete with Tesla, Rivian, and Chinese automakers. At its GM Forward event, CEO Mary Barra and other executives outlined a new vehicle computer, electrical architecture, and fourth-generation EV platform, planned to debut in the Cadillac Escalade IQ in 2028. GM says the system will bring more computing power, support over-the-air updates and automated driving, and extend to gas-powered vehicles. The company also plans eyes-off highway driving, starting with the Escalade IQ by 2028, then expanding to pickups and SUVs. GM virtually tested more than 300,000 battery designs using lithium manganese-rich chemistry, which it plans to use in its next-generation EVs. The platform’s battery packs and drive units will be more compact, while GM aims to shorten vehicle development from four or five years to about two.
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(UPDATED October 22, 2026 16:16 UTC)
General Motors is preparing a new electric-vehicle platform and software push to compete with Tesla, Rivian, and Chinese automakers. The fourth-generation platform, set to debut in the Cadillac Escalade IQ in 2028, will feature a new central computer, updated electrical architecture, and lithium manganese-rich batteries. GM says the batteries use substantially less nickel than current high-nickel cells, and will also power full-size electric vehicles such as the Silverado. The company plans to introduce eyes-off highway driving in the Escalade IQ by 2028, then expand the technology to pickups and SUVs. GM says its self-driving software runs more than 3 billion simulated miles daily, while AI tools have cut some engineering tasks from hours to seconds. The company is also developing an in-vehicle OnStar AI assistant and a unified mobile app, as it works to shorten vehicle development and improve capabilities.
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(UPDATED October 22, 2026 15:03 UTC)
General Motors is preparing a major technology overhaul to compete with Tesla, Rivian, and Chinese automakers, built around a new electric-vehicle platform and central computer. The system is set to debut in the Cadillac Escalade IQ in 2028, with GM promising more computing power, less wiring, faster connectivity, and support for AI and vehicle updates. The company also aims to bring eyes-off highway driving to the Escalade IQ by 2028, then expand the feature to other models. GM says its future EVs will be more aerodynamic and deliver more range per unit of energy, using lithium manganese-rich batteries. Artificial intelligence has cut some testing from hours to seconds, while GM hopes to shorten vehicle development from as long as five years to about two. A new OnStar assistant will answer questions about vehicle alerts, and a unified app is planned next year.
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(UPDATED October 22, 2026 04:10 UTC)
General Motors is reshaping its technology and electric-vehicle plans to compete with Tesla, Rivian, and Chinese automakers. At its GM Forward event, CEO Mary Barra and other executives outlined a fourth-generation EV platform, set to debut in the Cadillac Escalade IQ in 2028. It will include a new central computer and electrical architecture, with next-generation vehicles expected to have 40 times the computing power of earlier systems. GM says artificial-intelligence tools have cut some aerodynamic testing from 60 hours to 60 seconds, and the company aims to shorten vehicle development from four or five years to about two, without setting a target date. Future EVs are projected to be lighter, more aerodynamic, and more efficient. GM also plans to introduce eyes-off highway driving in the Escalade IQ by 2028, while developing LMR batteries for full-size electric vehicles. Barra did not promise that cost savings would mean lower prices.
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(UPDATED October 21, 2026 22:23 UTC)
General Motors is preparing a new generation of electric vehicles and software to compete with Tesla, Rivian, and Chinese automakers. At its GM Forward event, executives said the fourth-generation platform will debut in the Cadillac Escalade IQ in 2028, with a new central computer and electrical architecture. GM says next-generation vehicles will have 40 times the computing power and cellular connectivity up to 50% faster, supporting AI, updates, diagnostics, and automated driving. The company also aims to cut development time from four or five years to about two, though it gave no timeline for that goal. GM plans to introduce eyes-off highway driving in the Escalade IQ by 2028, then expand the feature to more models. Its forthcoming EVs are expected to be lighter and more aerodynamic, and use lithium manganese-rich batteries.