General Motors is refocusing its strategy and capital as executives look to become more efficient, in part by pulling back in some areas of its business where it once saw massive potential.
The automaker this month said it will sell its stake in a battery plant under construction in Michigan to joint-venture partner LG Energy Solution because current electric vehicle demand doesn't require as much capacity.
GM also intends to shut down its Cruise robotaxi business and pursue advanced driver-assistance technologies in personal vehicles, rather than spend the resources needed to scale a fleet of self-driving vehicles.
At the same time, GM is shrinking its struggling China operations as part of a restructuring expected to cut more than $5 billion out of earnings. By next year, GM executives said the company's operations in China should again be profitable, though smaller, without additional money from Detroit.
"In this dynamic environment, agility and capital efficiency are key success factors," GM CFO Paul Jacobson told analysts on a Dec. 10 call about the robotaxi shutdown.
— Lindsay VanHulle
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