Cruise’s chief executive officer resigned Sunday amid continued backlash over the driverless taxi company’s response to an October crash that led to the suspension of service in California.
Kyle Vogt announced his resignation On Sunday night, he wrote on X, formerly known as Twitter, that he was going to “spend time with my family and explore new ideas.” Mr. Vogt did not give a reason for his resignation or address the controversy surrounding the company he co-founded with Dan Cann in San Francisco in 2013. Cruise is now a subsidiary of General Motors.
But in a letter to employees on Saturday, First reported by Reuters Earlier Sunday, Vogt apologized, saying the company “went off course under my leadership.” …As CEO, I am responsible for the situation Cruise is in today. There are no excuses and no explanation for what happened. We need greater safety, transparency and community engagement. ”
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Cruise released a statement Sunday night announcing that the Cruise Board of Directors had accepted Vogt’s resignation and announced several executive changes.
Vogt’s resignation comes nearly a month after the California Department of Transportation suspended the robotaxi company from operating in San Francisco. The company is accused of misleading regulators and withholding footage of a serious crash in which one of its cars dragged a pedestrian.
The Oct. 2 incident, believed to be the first serious injury crash involving a self-driving car in San Francisco, involved a human driver heading south on Fifth Avenue when he turned onto Market Street. The incident occurred after the vehicle struck a woman who was crossing the street and was thrown onto the road. Adjacent cruise taxi.
The robotaxi slammed on its brakes when it hit the pedestrian, first coming to a stop and then attempting to pull over, leaving the woman trapped under it and dragged for 20 feet. The woman was seriously injured.
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In a letter announcing Cruise’s suspension, DMV officials claimed that company representatives did not initially show them the entire onboard camera footage of the robotaxi involved in the accident.
Footage provided by the company to DMV investigators and journalists covering the incident showed the Cruise robot taxi slamming on the brakes after colliding with a pedestrian. But the DMV learned of its existence from another government agency, and subsequent footage obtained from Cruise shows the robotaxi then performing a “pullover maneuver.”
A Cruise spokesperson said at the time that the company showed DMV investigators the full video of the incident “multiple times” and then provided a copy of the video when the two sides met on Oct. 3, the day after the accident. Stated.
Cruz later said the software incorrectly identified where the robotaxi first hit the woman and made the wrong decision. The company later announced a software recall for all 950 self-driving cars to improve their response after a crash.
The suspension means Cruise will no longer be able to offer robotaxi rides, both free and paid, without a human driver present. The company is still allowed to test its technology using safety screwdrivers.
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In his tweet thread, Vogt called the 10 years he’s been running the company “amazing,” saying, “The startup I started in my garage has delivered over 250,000 driverless rides in multiple cities. , each time gave people a small taste of the future.”
“Cruise is still in its infancy, but I believe it has a great future ahead of it,” Vogt wrote. “Cruise’s people are talented, driven, and resilient. They are executing on a solid multi-year roadmap and exciting product vision. What’s next for Cruise? I’m looking forward to seeing what you’re doing!”
Cruise spokesman Aaron McCrea said in a statement that Mo El-Shenawy, Cruise’s current executive vice president of engineering, will become Cruise’s president and chief technology officer. As announced last week, Craig Glidden, GM’s senior vice president of legal and policy and a member of Cruise’s board of directors, will become president and continue as Cruise’s chief administrative officer.
John McNeil, a former Lyft and Tesla executive who serves on the boards of GM and Cruise, has been appointed vice chairman of the Cruise board, McClear said.
“As previously announced, Cruise is suspending operations to take time to work with third-party experts to strengthen public confidence,” he said. “The results of our ongoing review will inform further next steps towards building a better cruise around safety, transparency and reliability.”
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GM CEO Mary Barra sent an email to Cruise employees Sunday thanking Vogt for his “great vision.” The New York Times reported.
“I also want you to know that the board of directors and I are diligently working to build Cruise for long-term success,” she wrote. “Public trust is essential to this. As we work to rebuild that trust, safety, transparency, and accountability will be our north star.”