NEW YORK – General engines plans to rely on artificial intelligence and automotive software for its future growth and development amid increasing foreign competition from Chinese automakers and a tougher U.S. market.
The Detroit automaker on Wednesday shared new details about a proprietary AI agent it is launching under its OnStar brand, plans for a fourth generation of more efficient all-electric vehicles and a goal to cut its vehicle development time in half.
GM also reconfirmed that by 2028 it wants to have eyesless highway driving, or “personal autonomy,” which will allow drivers to take their attention off the road. The automaker said the technology will start with the Cadillac Escalade IQ EV before rolling out to other, higher-volume models.
“All of these developments make us the car of the future,” CEO Mary Barra said Wednesday at an event showcasing the plans, called “GM Forward,” in downtown Manhattan.
The initiatives, which Barra, chief product officer Sterling Anderson and other executives discussed at the event, are designed to streamline the automaker’s operations, while also improving the capabilities of its vehicles for customers.
“Over the past 12 months, we have evolved the way we design, engineer and build our vehicles,” said Anderson, who led the event and was tasked with overseeing GM’s latest technology transformation.
GM said it is now targeting a vehicle development time of about two years, from design to production, compared to a traditional cycle of four to five years. However, the company did not detail a timeline for achieving this goal.
This event comes as Chinese automakers are expanding outside the United States and experiencing rapid development of new technologies and vehicles. Consulting firm AlixPartners estimates that China is currently bringing vehicles to market twice as fast as traditional automakers, with 40 to 50 percent less investment and a 30 percent cost advantage.
GM also continues to catch up with the American leader in electric vehicles Tesla when it comes to delivering technological advancements through over-the-air updates and automated driving capabilities.
Anderson, a former Tesla executive, declined to speak specifically about how GM’s technologies will compare to the electric vehicle maker’s, but said GM’s systems will be able to visualize or see more through the use of more types of sensors than a strictly camera-based system, which Tesla uses.
He also said the rapid development and new software architecture will help the company better compete with Chinese automakers overseas.
“Speed has an inherent virtue,” Anderson told CNBC in an interview after the event. “It’s not just about being able to get a car out faster, but also being able to develop a much better system than you could have otherwise.”
New generation vehicles
GM said Wednesday it has major plans for its next generation of electric vehicles and traditional vehicles powered by internal combustion engines.
The company said the next vehicles, regardless of type, will have 40 times more computing power and up to 50 percent faster cellular connectivity than previous systems.
This computing power should help the automaker with over-the-air updates, on-board diagnostics and AI, as well as other technologies such as automated driving features.
The new vehicle brain will debut on the $130,000 Cadillac Escalade IQ EV in 2028 before rolling out to other models, including its next generation of electric vehicles.
General Motors CEO and Chairman Mary Barra delivers a speech at the brand’s annual technology event in New York on October 21, 2026.
Charly Triballeau | AFP | Getty Images
GM said upcoming electric vehicles should be 25% more aerodynamic and 15% lighter and feature more compact electric motors and batteries.
GM Chairman Mark Reuss said that despite poor consumer adoption and the automaker pulling billions of dollars in investments in electric vehicles, it remained committed to producing them.
“We continue to develop our future electric vehicles and work to reduce battery costs,” Reuss said at the event. “And when the U.S. market is ready for large numbers of electric vehicles, we will be there for them.”
AI development
GM hopes to achieve these goals through the use of AI in research and development.
The company said it is developing a “new operational approach to vehicle development” that leverages enterprise AI and virtualization to increase speed.
“This concurrent engineering model allows us to innovate faster, continually improve, and evolve new technologies across our portfolio with incredible agility,” the company said in a statement.
From left: GM CEO Mary Barra, Chief Product Officer Sterling Anderson and President Mark Reuss at the company’s GM Forward event in downtown Manhattan on October 21, 2026.
Michael Wayland | CNBC
GM has used the development of its next-generation vehicles, including new battery chemistry, as an example of how new technologies are reshaping its vehicle development.
The company said it virtually tested more than 300,000 battery models using its recently announced lithium-rich manganese, or LMR, battery chemistry before building a single physical prototype.
Anderson said Wednesday that LMR will be the exclusive battery technology for its fourth-generation electric vehicles. GM previously said it wants to use these batteries in full-size electric vehicles such as its Chevrolet Silverado and Escalade IQ starting in 2028.
Anderson said GM is in a unique position to use AI compared to other automakers because of its more than 100 years of experience in the industry as well as OnStar’s 30 years.
“In the age of AI, data is commonplace,” Anderson said. “For decades, GM’s engineering, manufacturing and product teams have generated an unprecedented data set that we now use to create cutting-edge AI tools.”
Embedded AI
The company leverages its internal use of AI to better shape its experiences for its customers.
GM on Wednesday reconfirmed plans to launch a proprietary in-car AI assistant through its OnStar technology brand.
OnStar AI is expected to launch in the coming months on the 2027 Cadillac Lyriq EV via an over-the-air update before expanding to other models.
GM currently uses Google’s Gemini for its in-car AI assistant. The company told CNBC earlier this year that GM-developed AI would be further integrated into the vehicle.
The goal of OnStar AI, which will be available through a subscription, is to help customers be productive while in the car, especially if the vehicle has self-driving capabilities that don’t require the driver or passengers to monitor the system.
GM also reiterated Wednesday that it plans to launch eyeless highway driving in 2028. The automaker said a year ago that it wanted to launch the technology. It’s been five years since Barra said she expected the automaker to offer autonomous personal vehicles this decade.
“Our vision is that eventually every vehicle should drive alone or with its occupants anywhere, and we are investing across the entire autonomous driving stack to make this a reality,” Anderson said.
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