Automakers shift – General Motors has laid off more than 10% of its IT department—about 600 salaried employees—while hiring for AI-focused engineering backgrounds. The AI-driven shakeup is spreading across major automakers, even as other mobility firms push data-powered AI produ
When General Motors moved to swap skills inside its own organization, it wasn’t a quiet change. The company laid off more than 10% of its IT department—about 600 salaried employees—while making room for a deliberate hiring push toward AI-focused roles.
GM frames the shift as a “deliberate skills swap,” not a one-for-one exchange.. That distinction matters. because the company’s layoffs likely won’t be offset immediately by new hires. implying a net-negative job loss.. Still, GM says the openings created by the cuts are there for it to recruit IT staff with AI-focused backgrounds.
The capabilities GM is prioritizing go beyond people who simply use AI as a productivity tool.. The roles GM says it wants are centered on AI-native development. data engineering and analytics. cloud-based engineering. agent and model development. prompt engineering. and new AI workflows—meaning candidates who can build systems from the ground up. including designing systems. training models. and engineering pipelines.
Across the automotive sector, those AI-driven employment shifts are mounting.. CNBC calculated that Ford, GM, and Stellantis have cut a combined total of more than 20,000 U.S.. salaried jobs—19% of their combined workforces—off their recent employment peaks this decade. with the reasons broadly tied to technological change that includes AI.
That pressure is landing while automakers and other tech-heavy transportation companies are leaning hard into AI. Yet some engineers and founders describe a more uneven reality: they suggest not all businesses know exactly what they’re doing with it yet.
The pattern is visible across the sector’s stories: job cuts in traditional engineering functions are paired with hiring aimed at AI-native development, while at the same time new AI-heavy products are being built and sold by companies that can turn raw data into specific outcomes.
One of the clearer examples described here is Samsara.. Over the last decade. the company provided customers with cameras mounted inside millions of trucks for driver monitoring. theft prevention. and helping with liability claims.. Samsara then took that “mountain of data” to train its own model that can detect potholes and determine how quickly they are deteriorating.. The company is now pitching the result to cities, and says it has several under contract, including Chicago.
A little bird
Nothing this week, though the newsletter notes work in progress on a “fun one.” Readers are told they can reach out with insights or tips via email or Signal, with specific contact details for Kirsten Korosec and Sean O’Kane.
Deals!
Rivian’s spinoff Mind Robotics raised another $400 million, just two months after raising $500 million.. The newsletter also lays out a set of numbers tying together investors’ support for RJ Scaringe’s three startups—Mind Robotics. and Rivian—adding up to $12.3 billion.. It specifies that this figure does not include the close to $12 billion in gross proceeds from Rivian’s IPO. and does not count more recent strategic deals with Volkswagen Group and Uber. which together could add nearly $7 billion to Rivian’s coffers.
The reporting adds that the perception among insiders and investors is centered on Scaringe’s attention style—described as an ability to give “undivided attention” to whomever he is speaking with, whether it’s an investor, supplier, or exec.
Other funding and deal updates included in the newsletter:
Arkeus, an Australian startup that developed perception software for autonomous drones and aircraft, raised $18 million in a Series A round led by QIC Ventures. The list of additional investors named is R+VC, Folklore Ventures, DYNE Ventures, Main Sequence Ventures, Salus Ventures, and Beaten Zone.
Aseon Labs, a Redwood City, California, startup building a depot in a box for charging, cleaning, and inspecting autonomous fleets, came out of stealth with undisclosed backing by Y Combinator.
Rapido raised $240 million in a round led by Prosus, valuing the Indian ride-hailing company at $3 billion. Existing investors mentioned include WestBridge Capital and Accel, and the round is described as part of a larger $730 million primary and secondary financing.
Quantum Systems, a Germany-based drone startup backed by Peter Thiel, is in talks to raise around €600 million ($703 million), with companies like Airbus and Blackstone listed as possible investors, citing Bloomberg.
Notable reads and other tidbits
Redwood Materials readiness for an IPO is raised as a topic, with a named interview: Senior reporter Sean O’Kane spoke with Redwood Materials’ new CFO, Deepak Ahuja, noting his history at Tesla and that most recently he held a similar position at Zipline.
For safety-related headlines, the newsletter says Tesla Robotaxis have crashed at least twice since July 2025 while a teleoperator was remotely driving the vehicles, based on newly unredacted information submitted to the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration.
Uber is also expanding in India with two new engineering campuses that can fit about 9,600 people, plus a data center partnership aimed at supporting its overall product development and infrastructure operations.
Waymo issued a software update to a fleet of nearly 4,000 vehicles to help them avoid flooded roads as part of a recall announced by the NHTSA. A specific warning is included: the company hasn’t fully solved how its vehicles behave in these conditions.
One more thing
Disrupt, the flagship annual tech conference in San Francisco, will be held in October.. The newsletter says it will have six stages this year. pointing readers to more detail. and highlights one: the AI in the Real World Stage—where the program will cover robotics. autonomous systems. manufacturing. defense. and industrial operations.
The note closes with a standard disclosure: when purchases are made through links in the articles, a small commission may be earned, and it states this does not affect editorial independence—while inviting readers back for the next edition of TechCrunch Mobility.
AI skills General Motors layoffs automotive jobs Ford Stellantis Samsara autonomous drones Mind Robotics Rivian spinoff Rapido Quantum Systems Waymo recall Tesla Robotaxis Uber India Disrupt 2026