Cruise Co-Founders Resign Following Robotaxi Suspension
Cruise co-founders Kyle Vogt and Dan Kan step down from the self-driving vehicle company amid an ongoing regulatory crisis. General Motors quickly appoints new leadership to steer the troubled autonomous vehicle unit.
Cruise co-founder and CEO Kyle Vogt resigns from the self-driving vehicle company, alongside fellow co-founder Dan Kan. The executive departures come less than a month after the California Department of Motor Vehicles suspends Cruise's permits to operate on public roads. This regulatory action follows an October 2 incident where a Cruise robotaxi drags a pedestrian 20 feet after she is initially hit by a human-driven car.
General Motors responds immediately to the leadership vacuum by reorganizing Cruise's top executive team. GM Chair and CEO Mary Barra announces that Mo Elshenawy takes over as president and CTO, while Craig Glidden continues as chief administrative officer. Jon McNeill, a former Tesla president and Lyft COO, joins as vice chairman of the Cruise board, though the company leaves the CEO position temporarily unfilled.
The DMV suspends Cruise's operations because the company withholds crucial video footage of the dragging incident from regulators. In his resignation email to staff, Vogt praises the team for providing over 250,000 driverless rides and expresses belief in the company's future. The sudden leadership shakeup marks a dramatic fall for Vogt, who built Cruise from a garage startup into a major GM subsidiary.