Latest news with #GM-owned
Straits Times
02-05-2025
- Automotive
- Straits Times
GM set to make Singapore comeback in July after it inks deal with local distributor
The arrival of the Chevrolet Corvette in July 2025 marks the return of General Motors to Singapore. PHOTO: CHEVROLET GM set to make Singapore comeback in July after it inks deal with local distributor SINGAPORE – American multinational firm General Motors (GM) is set to make its Singapore comeback in July 2025 with a $650,000 supercar, eight years after it stopped offering Chevrolet mass-market cars in Singapore. The Chevrolet Corvette is a high-performance sports car. Its arrival will pave the way for other GM-owned brands and models to be sold here, said an industry expert. Local diversified motor company Alpine Group signed the agreement to sell GM vehicles in Singapore in February, according to Mr Keith Pang, the company's director. Its subsidiary, Alpine Motors, was Chevrolet's distributor until 2017 when the American brand pulled out from the market. The company's contract to handle warranty claims and repairs of Chevrolet cars ended in 2019. After the launch of the internal combustion engine, two-seater Corvette in July that is expected to cost around $650,000 with certificate of entitlement (COE), Alpine will bring in the petrol-hybrid version of the car in 2026. This is likely to be priced at around $900,000 with COE, said Mr Pang. This is a different type of vehicle from the mass-market and family-friendly Chevrolet models that used to be sold here. Although there were a handful of Corvettes brought in by parallel importers, this is the first time that the sports car will be available in Singapore through an official distributorship. Relaunching GM with an upmarket model like the Corvette is a sound strategy, said Mr Mahaendra Gofar, an automotive industry insider for more than 25 years. 'With the Corvette as the halo car, GM can follow up with models that have more mass-market appeal,' said the executive who has worked in car companies in China, Germany and Singapore before his current role advising automotive outfits in Indonesia. Mr Gofar said that GM's renewed interest in this part of the world may have been partly fuelled by sales volume falling in China due to stiff competition from Chinese car brands like BYD. Besides Chevrolet, GM has three other passenger car brands in its stable: Buick, GMC and Cadillac. While Buick is sold mainly in China, which uses left-hand drive models, Cadillac and GMC currently have right-hand drive cars that are sold in places like Australia, but not yet in South-east Asia. Cadillac is GM's premium brand pitched against the likes of Lexus, Audi and BMW, while GMC is known for its sport utility vehicles with very large engines, which traditionally do not sell well in Singapore. Although Chevrolet is widely available in the United States, its current models do not have right-hand drive versions yet. GM pulled out of Singapore in 2017 because its Chevrolet models did not comply with the stricter emission standards that were coming into force then. Around that period, the American auto group was also actively cutting back operations to stem losses. This included selling off the Opel brand to another automotive group, Stellantis, and closing factories in India and Australia. Chevrolet will be the second American car brand since 2021 to be officially sold in Singapore by authorised distributors, after Tesla opened its doors here in 2021. Ford, which is also American, now only sells pick-up trucks, while Jeep currently does not have a dealer here after its agent, Capella Auto, sold off its stock in February and stopped representing the American brand in Singapore. Join ST's WhatsApp Channel and get the latest news and must-reads.
Yahoo
22-03-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
Exclusive-Former Cruise CEO Vogt's robotics startup valued at $2 billion in new funding, sources say
By Anna Tong, Krystal Hu and Kenrick Cai (Reuters) - Kyle Vogt, former CEO of self-driving car company Cruise, has raised $150 million in a new funding round led by Greenoaks for his robotics startup The Bot Company, valuing the firm launched less than a year ago at $2 billion, sources told Reuters. This capital injection follows a previous $150 million raised from investors such as Spark Capital and former GitHub CEO Nat Friedman that valued the company at $550 million, sources added, as it is trying to build out the hardware and artificial intelligence-based software to power the robots. It reflects investors' confidence in a company that has yet to release its product and has no revenue, as the appeal lies in the potential of robotics powered by AI models that can learn to do new tasks, which have captured Silicon Valley's imagination. The boom in large language models is significantly boosting interest in robotics, as LLMs enable robots to process natural language commands and perform complex tasks, which could make robots more intuitive and adaptive for use cases at home or on factory floors. Robotics startups, with various form factors, are attracting substantial funding and attention, marking a new era of intelligent and adaptive robots. The Bot Company was co-founded by Vogt, Paril Jain, and Luke Holoubek, former engineers at Tesla and GM-owned Cruise. It aims to create at-home robots that assist individuals with daily tasks, such as household chores. While little is known about the design, sources indicate they are non-humanoid robots equipped with a base and grips. Both The Bot Company and Greenoaks declined to comment. Much of the excitement in the space is also spurred by humanoid-focused players like Tesla and startups such as Figure, which is currently raising funding at $40 billion with little revenue. Cobot, founded by Amazon veteran Brad Porter, has also raised $146 million for non-humanoid robots that focus on industrial automation. The capital required to build and scale underscores the complexities in developing robots that integrate into day-to-day operations. At-home robotics is a category where tech giants like Amazon have already invested significantly. Amazon launched its home robot, Astro, in 2021, focusing on home monitoring and entertainment capabilities. Last year, it decided to discontinue Astro for Business to focus solely on household robots. Two other robot startups, Physical Intelligence and 1x, have also raised hundreds of millions to create robots capable of daily household tasks like folding laundry and cleaning countertops. Vogt and his co-founders are part of a growing pool of talent returning to the robotics space from self-driving. Many startups in this sector aim to move beyond imitation learning to more action-based AI models inspired by large language models, enabling robots to learn movements more efficiently beyond the pre-programmed routines. The investment in The Bot Company reflects the growing interest in robotics startups, particularly those leveraging AI and spatial intelligence. Last year, VC investors poured $6.1 billion into robotics, up 19% from 2023, according to PitchBook. Besides the Bot Company, Greenoaks has previously invested in another robotics startup Mytra which focuses on industrial tasks. The San Francisco-based investor has underwritten billion-dollar valuations for young players such as customer service startup Sierra and Ilya Sutskever's Safe Superintelligence Inc. It stands to reap $2 billion from its $300 million investment in Wiz's $32 billion sale to Google this week, according to a source. Sign in to access your portfolio
Reuters
21-03-2025
- Automotive
- Reuters
Exclusive: Former Cruise CEO Vogt's robotics startup valued at $2 billion in new funding, sources say
(Reuters) March 21 - Kyle Vogt, former CEO of self-driving car company Cruise, has raised $150 million in a new funding round led by Greenoaks for his robotics startup The Bot Company, valuing the firm launched less than a year ago at $2 billion, sources told Reuters. This capital injection follows a previous $150 million raised from investors such as Spark Capital and former GitHub CEO Nat Friedman that valued the company at $550 million, sources added, as it is trying to build out the hardware and artificial intelligence-based software to power the robots. It reflects investors' confidence in a company that has yet to release its product and has no revenue, as the appeal lies in the potential of robotics powered by AI models that can learn to do new tasks, which have captured Silicon Valley's imagination. The boom in large language models is significantly boosting interest in robotics, as LLMs enable robots to process natural language commands and perform complex tasks, which could make robots more intuitive and adaptive for use cases at home or on factory floors. Robotics startups, with various form factors, are attracting substantial funding and attention, marking a new era of intelligent and adaptive robots. The Bot Company was co-founded by Vogt, Paril Jain, and Luke Holoubek, former engineers at Tesla and GM-owned Cruise. It aims to create at-home robots that assist individuals with daily tasks, such as household chores. While little is known about the design, sources indicate they are non-humanoid robots equipped with a base and grips. Both The Bot Company and Greenoaks declined to comment. Much of the excitement in the space is also spurred by humanoid-focused players like Tesla (TSLA.O), opens new tab and startups such as Figure, which is currently raising funding at $40 billion with little revenue. Cobot, founded by Amazon veteran Brad Porter, has also raised $146 million for non-humanoid robots that focus on industrial automation. The capital required to build and scale underscores the complexities in developing robots that integrate into day-to-day operations. At-home robotics is a category where tech giants like Amazon have already invested significantly. Amazon (AMZN.O), opens new tab launched its home robot, Astro, in 2021, focusing on home monitoring and entertainment capabilities. Last year, it decided to discontinue Astro for Business to focus solely on household robots. Two other robot startups, Physical Intelligence and 1x, have also raised hundreds of millions to create robots capable of daily household tasks like folding laundry and cleaning countertops. Vogt and his co-founders are part of a growing pool of talent returning to the robotics space from self-driving. Many startups in this sector aim to move beyond imitation learning to more action-based AI models inspired by large language models, enabling robots to learn movements more efficiently beyond the pre-programmed routines. The investment in The Bot Company reflects the growing interest in robotics startups, particularly those leveraging AI and spatial intelligence. Last year, VC investors poured $6.1 billion into robotics, up 19% from 2023, according to PitchBook. Besides the Bot Company, Greenoaks has previously invested in another robotics startup Mytra which focuses on industrial tasks. The San Francisco-based investor has underwritten billion-dollar valuations for young players such as customer service startup Sierra and Ilya Sutskever's Safe Superintelligence Inc. It stands to reap $2 billion from its $300 million investment in Wiz's $32 billion sale to Google this week, according to a source.
ArabGT
09-02-2025
- Automotive
- ArabGT
Uncertainty Looms Over the Future of the New Gas-Powered Blazer
A recent report from GM Authority, citing sources familiar with the matter, suggests that Chevrolet, a GM-owned brand, plans to discontinue the gasoline-powered Blazer crossover from its U.S. lineup after 2025. The Chevrolet Blazer was introduced to the U.S. market in 2019 and achieved its highest sales figures in 2020, a year heavily impacted by the coronavirus pandemic, with nearly 95,000 units sold. However, it has struggled to maintain that momentum, experiencing a significant decline in demand over the past year, with sales dropping by 20% compared to 2023. When approached for an official statement regarding the Blazer's future, a Chevrolet spokesperson declined to comment on the report, stating only that the company had no model updates to announce at this time. For reference, Chevrolet manufactures the Blazer at its Ramos Arizpe plant in Mexico, which also produces several GM electric vehicles, including the Chevrolet Blazer EV, Chevrolet Equinox EV, Cadillac Optique, and Honda Prologue. Automotive News recently reported that GM has reduced operations at this facility by cutting a production shift, leaving the plant running on just two shifts. This move reflects a downturn in new car sales, further complicated by higher tax rates imposed on vehicles built in Mexico when sold in the U.S. due to policies implemented during President Trump's administration. Notably, the Mexican Ministry of Economy announced via Twitter in January 2023 that GM intended to transition the Ramos Arizpe plant exclusively to electric vehicle production by 2024. However, that deadline has since passed without full implementation. The Blazer shares its platform with the Cadillac XT5 and XT6, both of which, according to GM Authority, could also face discontinuation after 2025. While reports strongly indicate that Chevrolet may phase out the gas-powered Blazer, the all-electric variant remains a confirmed part of the company's future production plans. In September 2024, Chevrolet launched the high-performance Blazer SS 2025, an all-electric model delivering 595 horsepower. This EV is set to be available in global markets within the year, with a starting price of $61,995, approximately 232,481 Saudi riyals.
