(Reuters) - General Motors Co (NYSE:GM) said on Wednesday it would hire more than 8,000 new technical staff this year, as the U.S. automaker accelerates its development of electric vehicles and software-driven services.
The company said it is expanding teams that electrify cars, develop vehicle software and autonomous technology and engineer fuel cells.
GM's announcement comes just a day after the company unveiled a $7 billion investment plan in Michigan, mainly toward making full-size electric pickups, intensifying a battle with rival Ford Motor (NYSE:F) Co for EV supremacy in North America.
The automaker, which was dethroned as the U.S. sales leader in 2021 by Japanese rival Toyota Motor (NYSE:TM) Corp, plans to boost its North America EV production capacity to more than a million units by late 2025.
It will also have to contend with current EV leader Tesla (NASDAQ:TSLA), which will soon open a second U.S. plant in Austin, Texas, and is on pace to sell more than 1 million electric vehicles globally in 2022.
GM is also looking to expand its digital commerce footprint by launching an online used vehicle market called CarBravo.