General Motors (GM) is turning to former employees of its defunct robotaxi startup Cruise to accelerate a new autonomous vehicle initiative.
According to sources familiar with the matter, the Detroit-based automaker has appointed Ronalee Mann, a former executive at both Cruise and Tesla, as Head of Product Operations. She will report to GM’s Chief Product Officer, Sterling Anderson.
Mann previously served as Strategy and Operations Manager at Cruise before departing in April 2024. She also held the role of Director of Strategic Programs at Tesla. In her new position at GM, she will focus on streamlining operations and eliminating inefficiencies in "systems, tools, and processes."
Sterling Anderson, who previously led Tesla’s Autopilot division, also revealed that another former Cruise executive, Rashed Haq, will join GM as the new Vice President of Autonomous Driving.
Anderson praised Haq’s contributions at Cruise, stating he will help the company "stay execution-focused and advance toward safe autonomy." Haq announced his new role on LinkedIn last week, while Mann’s appointment had not been previously disclosed.
Since joining GM in May, Anderson has restructured the century-old automaker’s software division. Reports in August indicated that he planned to rehire former Cruise employees to help develop a new autonomous vehicle platform for personal use.
GM shut down Cruise in December after investing over $10 billion in the robotaxi venture since 2016.
While Cruise had been permitted to operate autonomous taxi services in San Francisco alongside Waymo, it faced a ban in California following an incident where one of its vehicles severely injured a pedestrian, prompting a full fleet recall.
GM’s software division has seen significant executive turnover in recent months. The company’s Senior Vice President of Software and Services Engineering and its AI lead both departed since October. Last week, reports confirmed that Senior Vice President Baris Cetinok will also leave this month.
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