GM’s Hands-Free Driving System Arrives in 2028
▼ Summary
– General Motors plans to launch an eyes-off, hands-off automated driving system in 2028, starting with the Cadillac Escalade IQ.
– This new system builds on GM’s Super Cruise technology and will use lidar, radar, and cameras, initially operating on highways.
– GM is leveraging technology and engineers from its former subsidiary Cruise, including AI models trained on millions of driverless miles.
– The automaker aims to deploy this system faster than Super Cruise, capitalizing on reduced hardware costs and its manufacturing scale.
– GM’s system will function on unmapped highways and require human intervention only for specific situations like off-ramps.
General Motors has officially announced plans to release a fully automated driving system by 2028, beginning with the Cadillac Escalade IQ. This technology will enable drivers to take their eyes off the road and hands off the wheel, representing a major step forward in automotive autonomy. The announcement was made during the GM Forward event in New York City, confirming earlier reports about the automaker’s development efforts.
The new system builds on GM’s existing Super Cruise platform, an advanced driver assistance system that has been available since 2017 and currently operates across roughly 600,000 miles of compatible highways. While Super Cruise already allows for hands-free driving, the upcoming version will introduce eyes-off capability, relying on a combination of lidar, radar, and camera technologies for environmental perception. GM CEO Mary Barra emphasized that the company intends to roll out this enhanced system more rapidly than its predecessor.
To accelerate development, GM has integrated expertise and technology from Cruise, its former autonomous vehicle subsidiary. After closing Cruise’s commercial robotaxi operations in December 2024, GM absorbed the subsidiary and reassigned many of its engineers to work on next-generation driver-assistance features. The automaker is also incorporating Cruise’s technology stack, including AI models trained over five million driverless miles and a sophisticated simulation framework, into its own autonomy programs.
Sterling Anderson, GM’s executive vice president of global product, noted that while robotaxis initially served as a valuable proof of concept, the high cost of sensors and computing hardware made widespread deployment challenging. He explained that the industry has since achieved significant cost reductions, and GM’s large manufacturing capacity and established vehicle install base now position it to deliver personal autonomous vehicles at scale.
Currently, Mercedes-Benz is the only automaker in the U.S. offering a commercially available hands-off, eyes-off system, known as Drive Pilot. This system qualifies as Level 3 automation under SAE standards, meaning it can operate independently under specific conditions but may still require the driver to resume control. Drive Pilot is limited to certain mapped highways in California and Nevada and functions only in heavy, slow-moving traffic.
GM’s upcoming system, by contrast, will not require pre-mapped highways, according to Baris Cetinok, GM’s senior vice president of software and services. He stated that the system will manage most driving tasks autonomously, only requesting human intervention for situations such as navigating off-ramps. It is also designed to handle emergencies and unexpected incidents without relying on the driver as a fallback.
Introducing an eyes-off, hands-off system would place GM ahead of many competitors in the race toward autonomous driving. Stellantis recently previewed its own Level 3 system but has delayed its launch. Tesla continues to develop its camera-based Full Self-Driving technology, though its current systems still require drivers to remain attentive and keep their eyes on the road at all times.
(Source: TechCrunch)
