An innovation team General Motors formed in 2019 is OK with the automaker going outside the organization to help execute projects.
“We’ve found it is good to have internal and external talent,” says team leader Pamela Fletcher, GM’s vice president-innovations. “Great ideas come from everywhere.”
GM’s brain trust is impressive – “I can’t believe the talent we have within the company” – but building all from scratch in-house “is not our mantra,” says Fletcher (pictured, below left), who previously led the Chevrolet Bolt EV launch.
Consequently, the automaker, when necessary, works with outside talent, forms partnerships and makes acquisitions.
The goal of the innovation think tank is “to grow GM’s overall market,” Fletcher says at an online automotive conference organized by Reuters. Not every proposal comes to fruition. “If we realize we are not on the right path, we pivot to another opportunity.”
In looking at prospective projects, the team considers three things:
- “What is the size of the opportunity?” Fletcher says. “Is it worth doing?”
- “Can we come up with a novel solution that solves customer pain points?”
- “What would it take to commercialize the opportunity?”
GM’s BrightDrop business unit is “an example of a modest opportunity that became a big one,” Fletcher says.
BrightDrop produces electric-motorized delivery boxes, or e-pallets, on wheels for short-term travel, such as moving goods around a warehouse or from a delivery vehicle to a customer’s doorstep.
GM estimates the combined market for food and parcel delivery and returns will reach $850 billion in five years. By 2030, the company expects the world’s urban delivery business to increase 78%.
The automaker debuted BrightDrop’s first product, the EPI, at this year’s Consumer Electronics Show. GM partnered with Federal Express for testing prototypes.
Another creation that originated with GM’s innovation team is OnStar Insurance. It uses GM’s OnStar connectivity system to track participants’ driving habits and offers up to 20% off insurance rates for customers who demonstrate metrically they are good drivers.
The team now is involved in “accelerating the adoption and affordability of electric vehicles,” Fletcher says. “We are looking at ways to unlock battery costs.”
Another EV project in the works involves “the battery beyond the vehicle,” she says. That focuses on the best way to recycle EV batteries. “We’re laying the groundwork for scale.”
Steve Finlay is a retired WardsAuto senior editor. He can be reached at [email protected].
