Cadillac unveiled the CELESTIQ show car, previewing the brand’s future handcrafted and all-electric flagship sedan. Conceived to lead Cadillac’s electric future and inspired by the brand’s 120-year heritage, it serves as a touchstone for the Cadillac design and engineering teams, who continue to develop CELESTIQ as it moves closer to production.

In developing the show car, the design and engineering teams immersed themselves in the artisanship and customization that defined early Cadillac sedans such as the bespoke V-16 powered coaches of the prewar era, and the hand-built 1957 Eldorado Brougham.

Designers drew further inspiration from classic architecture such as the mid-century masterpieces of architect Eero Saarinen, along with other iconic American designs.

Realizing and infusing those influences within an Ultium-based EV architecture resulted in a clean-sheet expression for the CELESTIQ show car that considers the entirety of travel as a curated experience.

The show car previews some of the materials, innovative technologies and hand-crafted attention to detail harnessed to express Cadillac’s vision for the future. Highlights include five high-definition, advanced LED interactive displays, including a 55-inch-diagonal advanced LED display, along with expected industry firsts such as a variable-transmission Smart Glass Roof and Ultra Cruise, General Motors’ next evolution of available hands-free driver assistance technology which Cadillac plans to offer on CELESTIQ.

The Smart Glass Roof features Suspended Particle Device (SPD) technology that allows for four zones of variable lighting, enabling passengers to fine-tune their cabin experience for completely personalized comfort and visibility. Additionally, the 55-inch-diagonal advanced LED display introduces a passenger display with electronic digital blinds, an active privacy technology, which is designed to allow passengers to enjoy video content while blocking it from the view of the driver.

While they are previewed on the show car, these technologies and more will make CELESTIQ the most advanced vehicle ever from Cadillac. Availability for the production version of CELESTIQ will be announced at a later date.

GM is investing $81 million to support its assembly at GM’s Global Technical Center, the campus originally designed by Eero Saarinen and the heart of the company’s engineering and design efforts. The CELESTIQ will be the first production vehicle built there since the center’s inauguration in May 1956.

Additional details on the CELESTIQ production model will be announced later this year.