General Motors stock dipped after its first-quarter earnings release on April 28. Revenue fell to $43.6 billion, down $400 million from a year earlier. U.S. net revenue slid to $36.4 billion. Global deliveries dropped across North America, China, and Asia Pacific. Lower EV sales volumes dragged results. Yet adjusted earnings per share climbed to $3.70 from $3.35. And GM nudged up its full-year EPS and EBIT guidance, though not enough to thrill investors.
Behind the numbers, a bolder story emerged. Super Cruise, GM’s hands-free driver-assistance system, hit one billion miles driven. That’s across nearly 750,000 vehicles in the U.S. and Canada. Nearly half those miles—485.9 million—came in the past year alone. The system added 50,000 subscribers in the quarter. GM eyes over 850,000 paid Super Cruise users by year-end, with renewals at 30% to 40%. OnStar, which bundles the tech, posted $750 million in recognized revenue, up over 20% year-over-year. Super Cruise revenue itself surged 85%.
Autonomy’s Dual-Fuel Edge
GM isn’t just logging miles. It’s testing next-generation Super Cruise on highways in California and Michigan. Over 200 supervised development vehicles hit public roads. The goal: Level 3 autonomy—eyes-off, hands-off driving—on the Cadillac Escalade IQ by 2028. “Helping pave the way for ‘eyes off/hands off’ technology on the Cadillac Escalade IQ in 2028,” GM stated in its earnings materials, as reported by Yahoo Finance.
What sets GM apart? Versatility. “We are doing something unique. Developing a system for personal vehicles that we can deploy on both ICE [traditional gas-powered] and EV,” the company said on its earnings call, per TheStreet. Tesla’s Full Self-Driving sticks to EVs, with 8.6 billion supervised miles as of late April. GM’s approach spans powertrains. No one’s matched that yet.
Software services now anchor growth. OnStar deferred revenue reached $5.8 billion, up 50% year-over-year. GM projects $3.1 billion in recognized revenue for 2026, a 15% rise. Subscriptions hit 13 million by year-end, adding one million users. Premium options draw 30% of the base. CEO Mary Barra calls this non-cyclical, high-margin fuel. Nearly 90% of autonomy code now comes from AI generation.
EV headwinds persist. GM booked $1.1 billion in Q1 charges, part of $7.6 billion losses since late 2025. Total cash hits: $5.6 billion, with $3.2 billion paid out by April. U.S. EV market share ticked up to 13% from 10% in December. But volumes lagged. Still, models like the Chevy Equinox EV top non-Tesla sales. Cadillac claims luxury EV leadership, excluding Tesla on pricing. Full-year 2025 EV sales grew 48%, cementing GM as U.S. No. 2, per The Motley Fool.
Subscriptions Over Silicon: The Profit Pivot
Barra reiterated EVs as the endgame, just slower. GM repurposed some EV capacity for gas trucks and SUVs amid cooling demand. Tariffs helped: A Supreme Court ruling refunded levies, adding $500 million to 2026 EBIT guidance—now $13.5 billion to $15.5 billion. Tariff costs? Slashed to $2.5 billion-$3.5 billion.
Tesla looms large. Its 1.28 million FSD subscribers dwarf GM’s. But Super Cruise’s mapped highways—over 700,000 miles in North America—build trust. Trials convert at high rates. Priced at $39.99 monthly or $399 yearly post-trial, it scales. GM’s mapped limits? Critics note no city streets, unlike FSD. Yet real-world data feeds advancement. 7.1 million hands-free hours. 28.7 million trips. That’s 2,100 moon round-trips, as Autoblog calculated.
And services shine brighter. Super Cruise on track for $400 million in 2026. OnStar margins beat vehicle sales. Trucks still rule: Full-size models offset EV dips. North America margins? Targeted at 8-10%.
GM’s play tests legacy muscle against Tesla’s software blitz. Billion miles validate Super Cruise. Dual-fuel autonomy broadens appeal. Subscriptions recur. EVs recover. Tariffs ease. But execution matters. 2028 Level 3 arrives amid rivals’ pullbacks—BMW, Mercedes scaling back. GM presses on. Investors watch miles, not just headlines.
WebProNews is an iEntry Publication