General Motors is acquiring SoftBank Vision Fund 1’s equity ownership stake in autonomous vehicle company Cruise for $2.1 billion and separately will make an additional $1.35 billion investment in Cruise, replacing a previous commitment made by the fund in 2018.

We are extremely pleased to announce GM is leveraging the strength of its balance sheet to capitalize on the opportunity to increase its equity investment in Cruise and advance our integrated autonomous vehicle strategy. We continue to believe our investment represents an extraordinary opportunity for creating long-term shareholder value.

Our increased investment position not only simplifies Cruise’s shareholder structure, but also provides GM and Cruise maximum flexibility to pursue the most value-accretive path to commercializing and unlocking the full potential of AV technology.

—GM Chair and CEO Mary Barra

Last month Cruise became the first company to offer fully driverless rides to the public in a major US city—San Francisco.

Cruise Origin

The Cruise Origin is a shared, electric vehicle that has been purposefully designed from the ground up to operate without a human driver. This means it does not rely on certain human-centered features, such as a steering wheel or a sun visor, to operate safely. In the spirit of the US Department of Transportation’s six guiding principles for work on innovation in transportation, the Origin seeks to be in service of something greater: driving environmental sustainability, ensuring US leadership in developing and manufacturing autonomous technology and artificial intelligence, supporting the American workforce and promoting accessibility. GM is manufacturing the Origin in Michigan at Factory ZERO.

In addition to GM’s increased investment, Cruise today launched its Recurring Liquidity Opportunity Program, which delivers on Cruise’s promise to provide Cruise employees the potential for long-term share price upside as well as flexibility around share liquidity. This program is intended to keep Cruise extremely competitive in the talent market against both public and private companies as the company enters the early commercialization phase.