GM plans large-scale launch of self-driving cars in US cities in 2019

GM said last month it sees deployment of autonomous vehicles in quarters, not years, Pictured is a self-driving GM Bolt EV.

SAN FRANCISCO/DETROIT: General Motors Co laid out its vision for self-driving vehicles on Thursday, telling investors it planned a commercial launch of fleets of fully autonomous robo-taxis in multiple dense urban environments in 2019, in a challenge to rivals such as Alphabet Inc's Waymo. 

Underscoring the potential opportunity ahead, GM President Dan Ammann told investors the lifetime revenue generation of one of its self-driving cars could eventually be in the "several hundred thousands of dollars." That compares with the US$30,000 (RM122,460)  on average that GM collects today for one of its vehicles, mostly derived from the initial sale.