From ‘hands-free’ to ‘eyes-off’: how General Motors is simulating its
way to autonomous driving
[October 13, 2026] By
ALEXA ST. JOHN and MIKE HOUSEHOLDER
WARREN, Mich. (AP) — At the General Motors Global Technical Center in
Warren, Michigan, in suburban Detroit, hundreds of volunteer, real-world
drivers have hopped inside a Cadillac Lyriq electric vehicle or other
popular GM models and experienced all sorts of things while in the car:
regular roadway driving, driving up and down hills, construction, rain,
nearby traffic and other scenarios.
But while the vehicle is real, the world that the drivers are
experiencing is not. Instead, they're inside a simulator; a 360-degree,
immersive environment where their every eye movement, heart stress,
sweating and other reactions are measured against countless driving
tests. Here, GM is testing a human driver's response in vehicles just as
much as it’s testing the vehicle tech itself.
That simulation is how GM — and other automakers — are testing future
iterations of their advanced driver assistance systems. Also called ADAS,
this technology so far allows for well-known vehicle features such as
automatic emergency braking, blind spot warnings, lane departure
warnings, lane-centering assist, surround-view cameras, driver attention
monitors and many more.
These features let drivers go “hands-free” at certain times,
particularly while on the highway.
Automakers anticipate that these systems will eventually grow so
advanced that drivers will be allowed to safely take their hands off the
wheel, and their eyes off the road. But the race is not only about the
technology itself, but the payoff, which is a big one. Automakers with
the best tech will get more consumers to subscribe to those
capabilities, making automated driving a lucrative play for the
industry.
“Going eyes off is really the turning point where consumers will be more
willing to pay for this feature, because when you go eyes off, now
you’re really potentially giving the driver back some time, because they
don’t have to be paying attention to the road,” said Sam Abuelsamid,
vice president of market research at firm Telemetry. “That’s where they
see the real value proposition.”
GM says its version will be possible by 2028, when it's launching the
next Super Cruise on the Cadillac Escalade IQ luxury electric sport
utility vehicle. Others are on their heels.
“2028 is the broad timeline when there’s a whole group of companies that
are all targeting launching systems like this that can operate at
highway speeds," Abuelsamid added, "on a wider variety of roads than
what we see with a lot of the systems today."
GM's tech evolving from ‘hands-free’ to ‘eyes-off’
Since 2017, GM has sold vehicles with Super Cruise, a hands-free,
assisted driving system — notably not self-driving — that's available to
use on over 630,000 roads in the U.S. and Canada, and more around the
world.
“You can take your hands off the wheel and keep your eyes on the roads,
but safely enjoy a de-stressed drive on those roads in your normal,
everyday commutes,” said Tyson Becker, GM executive director for
autonomous vehicle strategy and product.
There are now more than 20 different GM models across its four brands —
Cadillac, GMC, Buick and Chevrolet — equipped with the technology. The
automaker plans to expand the number of models available with Super
Cruise in the coming years with the ultimate goal of launching the next
generation of Super Cruise, technology that allows for safe, “eyes-off"
driving.
“What we’re talking about is truly a technology that is so safe that it
allows you to take your eyes off the road while it’s active, and do
other things in the cabin, whether that is looking at your phone,
looking at your laptop, taking a meeting, watching a movie,” Becker
added.
Simulation is part of what makes that future possible
One of the most challenging aspects of developing autonomous technology
is predicting, and getting a vehicle to respond to countless, unexpected
scenarios while on the road.
That could mean a dog, deer, or even a child, sprinting onto a road; a
detour unforeseen on a navigation app or a suddenly active construction
zone. A driver — or in this case, the technology — needs to be able to
recognize that the immediate environment has changed, and to respond in
a safe way.
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In this image from video, General Motors senior researcher Akilesh
Rajavenkatanarayanan plays Candy Crush on a tablet mounted in a
Cadillac Lyriq while it is in "eyes off" mode during a simulated
drive at the automaker's Global Technical Center Friday, Sept. 18,
2026, in Warren, Mich. (AP Photo/Mike Householder)
 That's largely where simulation,
combined with data collection and artificial intelligence, comes in.
In GM simulations, drivers of all experience levels take the wheel
and face a multitude of computer-generated scenarios on highways or
urban landscapes replete with other “humans” and roadway signage.
“We want to really be able to take anything that
our customers could experience out on the road,” said Maureen
August, senior manager at GM Research & Development.
The ultimate GM challenge for drivers ... Candy Crush
As participants drive in the simulator, GM looks at key data points,
like heart rate, stress, where the driver's eyes are going, how long
they are looking at one part of the road or another and how they are
attending to the road, all from a nearby control room.
One of the best ways to test driver attention these days: inviting
drivers to play Candy Crush.
“We found it’s very effective for getting people involved and
wanting to get the highest score,” August said. “It’s a great way
for us to get you engaged and then have to pull you away from a
task.”
After participants drive, they're asked how they felt, how they
understood the system, and whether it was intuitive. Other factors
GM looks at include comfort, how convenient certain features are to
use, whether a driver feels the system is trustworthy and how many
seconds are required for a driver to take full control of a moving
vehicle.
“We want to make sure that you’re responding effectively and that
we’ve given you the alert far enough ahead that you can take over if
needed," August said. "But we also want to be sure that if you feel
comfortable and the vehicle is capable, that you don’t take over,
that you let the vehicle do what it’s capable of doing.”
Other automakers racing to advanced technology
Hands-off technology is being deployed by many automakers today;
Ford's BlueCruise is among the more notable examples.
BlueCruise is available in equipped Ford vehicles for use on more
than 130,000 miles of certain North American roads.
Tesla lists technology used in its cars as “Full Self-Driving,” but
it still requires human oversight.
As for more advanced systems, there aren't any passenger vehicles in
production with eyes-off technology now — some tech companies,
however, offer autonomous commercial robotaxi services in select
cities.
Far smaller rollouts of sophisticated light-duty driving systems
from various auto companies have been available in limited markets
in recent years, but have been discontinued.
In addition to the technology challenges, there are regulatory
hurdles, experts say.
“There isn’t really much in the way of real regulation that governs
these systems today,” Telemetry's Abuelsamid said. “And so, the
automakers are basically going state by state to get approvals for
where they can operate these systems.”
Because of that, he said, “it remains to be seen where GM will be
able to offer their eyes off system come 2028.”
Ultimately, automakers are racing toward more advanced tech, not
only to make their vehicles more enticing, but also to leverage
subscription fees customers will pay to have the technology onboard.
The name of the game, Abuelsamid said, is “to provide enough
convenience and safety, the consumers will be willing to pay a
recurring fee to use it ... so drivers can do things like watch a
video, read a book, text — without having to watch the road all the
time.”
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