Where does Motor City fit in future mobility?

Detroit has long served as the heart of America’s automotive industry. By the 1920s, Chrysler, Ford and General Motors had all set up a base in the area and by 1950 nearly 300,000 people worked in automotive manufacturing. Around this time the nickname Motor City made its way into common parlance. The industry that emerged in the city and its surroundings became the template for mass production, which quickly spread beyond cars to numerous other sectors, and the region’s reputation was made.

But the world has come a long way since then. The financial crisis hit automakers hard, with bankruptcies at both Chrysler and GM, and the shift to new mobility has players now focusing on software and services more than chrome and steel. But Detroit and the state of Michigan as a whole are determined to not only remain relevant but to lead the movement towards future mobility.

“Mobility is not just a big part of our economy; it’s part of our way of living,” asserts Trevor Pawl, Chief Mobility Officer for the State of Michigan.