General Motors has quietly rolled out about 50 Fanuc collaborative robots on the assembly line at its Detroit-based Factory Zero plant, months after cutting more than 1,000 positions from the flagship electric-vehicle site. The move has reopened a fight with the United Auto Workers over the pace of factory automation just two years before the next master contract is due.
Cobots on the panel line
The Fanuc-built machines assist workers with attaching body panels as GMC Hummer EVs and Chevrolet Silverado EVs move down the line, according to reporting first surfaced by Crain's Detroit Business. GM says the cobots reduce repetitive strain and improve ergonomics rather than replace human labor, and are being installed alongside teams rather than in place of them.
UAW Local 22 files grievances
UAW Local 22, which represents Factory Zero workers, has already filed grievances tied to the cobot deployment. Union leaders argue that adding automation on the heels of steep layoffs — production disruptions and softer EV demand have driven repeated staffing cuts — sends a signal that hardware, not workers, will absorb the plant's next efficiency push. Industry analysts, however, point out that GM's own math after the 2023 contract added roughly $500 in per-vehicle labor cost, sharpening the case for automation.
Part of a broader GM automation push
The Factory Zero move dovetails with GM's broader industrial and energy tech investments and CEO Mary Barra's 2025 GM Forward pledge to expand AI-assisted manufacturing. Cobots are also becoming standard equipment across the industry: Toyota is preparing to deploy Digit humanoids in Ontario and BMW has widened its Figure trials from Spartanburg to Germany, echoing wider industrial automation moves like Fanuc's Cobot & Go cells.
Reporting based on coverage from Crain's Detroit Business, Yahoo Finance, Carscoops and Autoblog.