General Motors plans 8,000 new tech hires to power EV goals

(Reuters) - General Motors Co 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 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 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, 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.

(Reporting by Kannaki Deka in Bengaluru; Editing by Ramakrishnan M.)