The future of General Motors (NYSE: GM) is set to focus on electric vehicles and, interestingly, flying cars. The company is seeking to expand its electric vehicle lineup as it prepares to convert its product line to become fully electric and is looking to apply its electric propulsion system to aerial mobility.
On Wednesday, GM announced the plans for the future of the company. The future of GM is a fully electric lineup with a vertically integrated business model, akin to that of Tesla (NASDAQ: TSLA). The core of GM's future is its "Ultium Drive" system, a system of interchangeable drive units and motors that can be installed on any vehicle in GM's lineup. The flexibility of the Ultium Drive, according to GM, will even allow it to power large pickups and sports cars.
"General Motors' next-generation EVs are expected to be powered by a family of five interchangeable drive units and three motors, known collectively as "Ultium Drive." Ultium Drive will help the company transition its current portfolio to a fully electric lineup, providing significant advantages over GM's previous EVs in performance, scale, speed to market, and manufacturing efficiencies," GM said.
The advantage of GM's Ultium Drive is the increased driving range, thanks to the drive's design, which is more economical than many existing EV drives. The drive is also smaller, allowing more room for passengers and cargo space.
Flying cars, stuck mainly in the domain of science fiction, may soon be a reality thanks to GM. CEO Mary Barra referred to air vehicles on Monday, saying that the Ultium Drive's versatility could allow it to power an air vehicle. More specifically, GM would likely be aiming for an air taxi, a vertical take-off and landing vehicle that uses electric motors instead of combustion engines.
Air taxis are far from being commonplace, but working prototypes have been tested by numerous air taxi startups. Volocopter is one such startup, which has produced and demonstrated a working prototype. It is currently unknown if GM intends to build their own air taxies, or if they will partner with one such startup to produce them.