Kyle Vogt, the serial entrepreneur who played a pivotal role in founding and guiding Cruise from its startup origins in a garage through its acquisition and integration with General Motors, has resigned. This development was communicated to employees in an email.
In a parallel internal communication, GM Chair and CEO Mary Barra announced that Mo Elshenawy, Cruise’s executive vice president of engineering, would take on the roles of president and CTO for Cruise. Craig Glidden, a Cruise board member and GM’s EVP of legal and policy, who recently assumed the position of chief administrative officer at Cruise, will continue in that capacity. Jon McNeill, a GM board member and former COO at Lyft and president of Tesla, has been appointed vice chairman of the Cruise board. McNeill will work alongside Cruise Board Chair Mary Barra. A statement from a Cruise spokesperson confirmed Barra’s email.
As of the latest update, no successor has been named for the CEO position.
This executive reshuffling follows less than a month after the California Department of Motor Vehicles suspended Cruise’s permits for self-driving vehicles on public roads. The suspension followed an incident on October 2, where a pedestrian, initially hit by a human-driven car and then in the path of a Cruise robotaxi, was run over and dragged 20 feet by the autonomous vehicle. The DMV cited Cruise for withholding approximately seven seconds of crucial video footage showing the incident.
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In his email to all employees, Vogt expressed his resignation and gratitude for the past decade, highlighting the accomplishment of over 250,000 driverless rides across multiple cities. Despite stepping down, Vogt conveyed optimism about Cruise’s future, praising the team’s brilliance and resilience. He posted a similar message on social media, ending with plans to spend time with family and explore new ideas.
Barra’s email, sent shortly after Vogt’s, acknowledged his vision and dedication, expressing understanding and respect for his decision to step down. She emphasized the board’s commitment to Cruise’s mission and transformative technology, focusing on making transportation safer, cleaner, and more accessible.
The internal dynamics at Cruise have been challenging since the October 2 incident, with employees attributing low morale to perceived mismanagement and a lack of emphasis on safety. Layoffs of contract workers, a pause in driverless fleets, and the suspension of the employee share-selling program further fueled discontent. Cruise later reinstated limited share-selling opportunities and issued a blanket apology to its staff for the challenging situation. Kyle Vogt and Cruise’s chief product officer, Dan Kan, founded the autonomous vehicle company in 2013, eventually leading to its acquisition by GM in 2016. Prior to Cruise, Vogt co-founded Justin.tv, Twitch, and Socialcam, all of which underwent notable acquisitions.
