Pre-production of the Cruise Origin, the autonomous people carrying shuttle thing, has started. As Bloomberg reports, the company will build 100 units at its Warren, Michigan facility. The company says it expects all 100 units to be done this summer so more testing can begin.
Cruise CEO Dan Ammann expressed excitement over the developments the company has made. In a post on the company’s news site, Ammann gave a nod to the engineers who helped make this milestone happen.
“….hundreds of engineers from General Motors, Honda and Cruise haven’t skipped a beat, completing their development work, getting supply chains ready, and ordering and installing tooling. Against all odds, they’ve kept the Origin program on time.”
Once full production finally begins in early 2023, the Origin will be produced at GM’s new four million sq. ft. Hamtramck, Michigan EV plant known as Factory Zero.
GM is the majority owner of the company. This gives Cruise pretty good access to both resources and money. The company also announced today that it has secured a $US5 ($6) billion credit line from GM Financial. Ammann described this money as a war chest that totals out to $US10 ($13) billion. He described the amount as necessary. “$US10 ($13) billion. It’s a big number. However, when you think about what we’re building — safer, cleaner, and more accessible transportation for the world — you quickly realise it’s also a necessary number.”