GM's Cruise to pay at least $8 million to woman hit by robotaxi: reports

By Mike Murphy

Cruise, the self-driving-vehicle unit of General Motors Co., has reportedly reached a settlement for between $8 million and $12 million with a pedestrian who was struck and severely injured by one of its robotaxis last year.

Fortune first reported Tuesday that a settlement had been reached, and Bloomberg News later confirmed the report, with both publications citing unnamed sources familiar with the matter. Neither the exact amount of the settlement nor the victim's name was reported.

"The hearts of all Cruise employees continue to be with the pedestrian, and we hope for her continued recovery," a Cruise spokesperson said in a statement Wednesday.

Last October, in downtown San Francisco, a Cruise driverless car hit a pedestrian who had already been struck by another vehicle. After briefly stopping, the Cruise vehicle pulled to the side of the road, dragging the victim beneath it for about 20 feet - a detail which was not immediately relayed to authorities investigating the crash.

Also read: Federal regulators now investigating Waymo over autonomous-vehicles crashes

In the aftermath of the crash, California regulators revoked Cruise's license to operate in San Francisco, accusing the company of not being forthcoming enough, and Cruise later suspended all operations of its driverless cars. Cruise co-founder and Chief Executive Kyle Vogt resigned in November, and in December nine "key leaders" were dismissed as the company said it would lay off about 24% of its workforce.

A scathing independent report found that Cruise did not intentionally mislead authorities, but cited "numerous" failings including poor leadership, mistakes in judgment and an "us vs. them" mentality toward regulators. Cruise also disclosed in January that it was the subject of investigations by the U.S. Justice Department and the Securities and Exchange Commission, in addition to separate probes by California and federal regulators.

Cruise this week announced it was resuming testing of its robotaxis, with human safety drivers on board, in the Phoenix area. It was unclear if or when Cruise might resume operations in San Francisco.

The Cruise business lost about $2 billion for GM (GM) in 2023, but CEO Mary Barra has said the automaker is committed to relaunching the unit, albeit with "substantially lower spending."

Meanwhile, Vogt has started a new company focused on developing robots to help with household chores. He tweeted Tuesday that it has already raised $150 million in funding.

-Mike Murphy

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05-15-24 1644ET

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