GM to Debut Eyes-Off Autonomous Driving on 2028 Cadillac Escalade IQ

Key Points

• GM will debut the next generation of its Super Cruise hands-free semi-autonomous driving tech, which will allow for eyes-off driving, in the 2028 Cadillac Escalade IQ.
• The 2028 Escalade IQ will also debut a new centralized computing platform that will integrate all of the vehicle’s systems.
• GM also announced conversational artificial intelligence with Google Gemini, as well as the upcoming ability to have the automaker’s electric vehicles send power back to the grid.

GM says its customers have logged more than 700 million miles using its Super Cruise hands-free semi-autonomous highway-driving tech without a single crash attributed to the system. But hands-free does not mean eyes-free; Super Cruise monitors the driver during its operation and will deactivate if their gaze strays from the road for too long. However, GM says that will change with the 2028 Cadillac Escalade IQ, the brand’s super-sized electric SUV.

Related: First Test: What It’s Like Using Mercedes-Benz’s Drive Pilot Automated Driving System

The 2028 Escalade IQ will debut next-generation Super Cruise that allows the driver to take their hands off the wheel and eyes off the road, which should make it a true Level 3 autonomous system. To date, Mercedes-Benz’s Drive Pilot is the only such technology available to U.S. buyers, but it only works on a few select highways in Southern California and Nevada. GM has not said yet where the ’28 Escalade IQ’s Super Cruise will function, but the automaker currently has more than 600,000 miles of road mapped for the current iteration of Super Cruise.

The Software-Defined Cadillac

Also debuting on the 2028 Escalade IQ will be a new centralized computing platform that GM says is “a full reimagining of how vehicles are designed, updated, and improved over time.” Similar to the upgrades Volvo made to the 2026 EX90 and Polestar 3, this change integrates computing needs from all vehicle systems — from powertrain and suspension components to infotainment and safety tech — into a single high-powered processor. GM says the new tech will have 10 times more over-the-air-update capacity and 1,000 times more bandwidth than its current computers, as well as increased artificial-intelligence performance for autonomy and advanced safety features.

Read More Autonomous Driving News Coverage on Cars.com:

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• A Sensory Experience: GM Reveals Further Details of Ultra Cruise
• How Well Does Ford’s BlueCruise Hands-Free Driving System Work?
• Study: Most Automaker Partial Automation Driving Systems Need Improvements

AI and At-Home EV Developments

In the same announcement, GM also highlighted a pair of more widely available technologies that it will be bringing to market next year. The first is conversational AI with Google Gemini, which the automaker says will make it “possible to talk to your car as naturally as you would to a fellow passenger.” (If you’re that desperate for conversation in the car, might we suggest calling your mother?)

GM did not specify which brands or vehicles will get this technology first. It will just be a placeholder, though, as the automaker says it is working on its own custom-built AI that will — with the owner’s permission — be tailored to their vehicle and personal preferences. The company posits that this tech could explain one-pedal driving to new EV drivers and even alert them to possible maintenance issues, among other uses.

And, after launching GM Energy last year, the automaker-turned-utility-provider will launch a new component in its self-contained home-energy system in 2026. The GM Energy Home System consists of a bidirectional EV charging station and a home battery that will be available to lease for GM EV owners. GM says that this setup will be able to feed electricity back into the local electrical grid “soon.”

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