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Carl Jenkins
SVP of Autonomous Vehicle Platforms
Carl Jenkins was the Senior Vice President of Autonomous Vehicle Platforms at Cruise Automation, a subsidiary of General Motors focused on developing self-driving car technology.12 He held this position for six years before recently announcing his resignation on February 15, 2024.14
Career at Cruise
Jenkins joined Cruise in February 2018 as Senior Vice President of Hardware & Vehicle Programs.3 During his tenure, he oversaw hardware development in partnership with General Motors and played a key role in building up Cruise's hardware team from 20 to approximately 750 employees.12
Professional Background
Prior to joining Cruise, Jenkins had an extensive career in the automotive and technology sectors:
- Hyperloop One: Senior Vice President of Hardware (May 2017 - January 2018)
- Karma Automotive LLC: Senior Vice President - Vehicle Line Executive (June 2015 - April 2017)
- Google[x]: Senior Manager & Vehicle Chief Engineer for Self-Driving Car project (2013 - May 2015)
- Ricardo: Director of Vehicle Engineering and other leadership roles (November 1999 - April 2013)
- Magna Steyr: Director of Vehicle Engineering (July 2004 - April 2010)
Departure from Cruise
Jenkins' resignation comes at a challenging time for Cruise, following a series of leadership changes and operational setbacks:
- The company suspended all autonomous vehicle operations after an October 2023 incident involving a pedestrian in San Francisco.2
- CEO Kyle Vogt and co-founder Dan Kan resigned in November 2023.2
- Nine key team leaders were terminated in December 2023.1
Jenkins' departure marks the latest in a series of high-profile exits from the company as it faces ongoing scrutiny and works to address safety concerns and regulatory issues.12
Highlights
One week on since my last post I just want to say a huge thank you to everyone who sent me direct messages, called me, added comments and reactions. To say I am humbled by everyone's kind words is an understatement - thank you so much, it means a great deal to me.
I was planning to have a few months break before my next adventure. Let's see how that pans out.....
Hi folks. For those that know me you will know I never post my own content. In the past I have added to other people’s / corporate posts. Well tonight / today this from me. I just decided to resign from Cruise after 6 incredible years. In the days ahead I may elect to finally document what I actually achieved at Cruise in my LinkedIn profile. But don’t bank on it because my future plans are completely different and in my own destiny. More may follow but for now I just want to say a heart felt thank you to the Cruise HW that I built from 20 to circa 750 that developed amazingly unique L4 HW from silicon, computer, telematic modules through all types of sensor modalities and end to end product development working closely with GM. I wish everyone my sincere thank you and best wishes. Make smart careeer choices moving forward. Carl
