GM-Backed Cruise Buys Self-Driving Startup Voyage
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Cruise, the self-driving technology company that’s majority-owned by General Motors Co., said it acquired autonomous-vehicle startup Voyage, which operates a service in retirement communities.
“I’m pleased to welcome Oliver Cameron and Voyage to the Cruise team,” Cruise President Kyle Vogt announced March 15 on Twitter, confirming a Bloomberg News report from early this month. “Voyage is a nimble and highly capable company that shares our mission to make transportation safer and more accessible, and we’re thrilled that they’re joining us.”
The deal gives Cruise more than 60 people trained in developing and running self-driving vehicles, where experience and talent comes at a premium. Cameron, Voyage’s CEO, is joining Cruise as vice president of product.
Cruise’s acquisition of Voyage happens at a time when autonomous-technology companies are consolidating. Zoox Inc. sold to Amazon.com Inc. last year. For Voyage, joining Cruise is a way for Cameron to continue his work with the aid of the buyer’s 1,800 employees and its deeper pockets.
Fleets are investing in tech-based safety tools that inform and forewarn potential risk. But how do they condition and prepare drivers to respond to safety alerts? Find out as the RoadSigns Team speaks with Tom DiSalvi, VP of safety at Schneider National, and Charlie Mohn, director of product innovation at Drivewyze. Hear a snippet, above, and get the full program by going to RoadSigns.TTNews.com.
The purchase price wasn’t disclosed.
While Voyage has raised $52 million, Cruise has raised more than $8 billion and gets about $1 billion a year from GM.
“The self-driving industry is consolidating, and the leaders of a trillion-dollar market are fast emerging,” Cameron said on a blog post on Voyage’s web page. “After being intimately involved with the AV industry for the last five years, I can say with certainty that Cruise — with its advanced self-driving technology, unique automaker partnerships, and all-electric purpose-built vehicle with no human controls — is poised to be the clear leader.”
Cameron said that key members of Voyage’s technology team will be working on the Cruise Origin, the company’s dedicated self-driving shuttle.
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