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Ex-Apple VP Mike Abbott Joins General Motors as Exec Vice President, Software

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Re: Ex-Apple VP Mike Abbott Joins General Motors as Exec Vice President, Software

#141

Post by tonymet »

tester756 wrote: post #86
tonymet wrote: post #80

Quick poll: who here doesn't want infotainment software in their car? How about keeping cars limited to 1990s level logic: basic ICs, fuel / emissions / safety control (abs, airbags). Something like 1990s Mazda with a japanese-size pickup, miata & basic sedan / hatchback.

Why get rid of 3 decades of security improvements?

some are good e.g. ABS, ESP, airbags. Some are mixed like backup cameras (low res, poor field of view). Some are distractions like all the climate stuff, gps, complex radio, apps.

You could save all the great stuff and still operate the car with no software, simple firmware, and 2002-era ICs

Re: Ex-Apple VP Mike Abbott Joins General Motors as Exec Vice President, Software

#142

Post by tonymet »

neogodless wrote: post #99
tonymet wrote: post #80

Quick poll: who here doesn't want infotainment software in their car? How about keeping cars limited to 1990s level logic: basic ICs, fuel / emissions / safety control (abs, airbags). Something like 1990s Mazda with a japanese-size pickup, miata & basic sedan / hatchback.

I don't care about "infotainment" per se. But there is information I want, and there is entertainment I want. I want my readily replaceable phone to be able to connect to a screen that's safe for a driver to view, to display GPS information. I want my readily replaceable phone to be able to play music through the car's speakers, and allow me access to basic sound playback controls. Beyond that, I don't care. So do I…

how about an iPAD mount and a midi interface into the physical keys.

Re: Ex-Apple VP Mike Abbott Joins General Motors as Exec Vice President, Software

#143

Post by rqtwteye »

tmpz22 wrote: post #118
rqtwteye wrote: post #98

Reminds me of JCPenney hiring the Apple Store guy. They seem to think that a big name from a functioning organization like Apple can fix their own dysfunctional organization. And pretty much always the new guy will fail because he can’t do miracles in a bad organization.

> And pretty much always the new guy will fail because he can’t do miracles in a bad organization. Or the individual only appeared talented as a result of the structural support from their original organization.

That's exactly what I meant. They performed well because they were in a high performance environment.

Re: Ex-Apple VP Mike Abbott Joins General Motors as Exec Vice President, Software

#144

Post by olliej »

lallysingh wrote: post #113
olliej wrote: post #57

The problem isn't "can GM make software" (though that is of course _a_ problem). It's "can GM continue to produce updates to a car's entertainment system for years after it was released, including matching new features from Android Auto or CarPlay". I'm not even sure it's a "will", I think it's legitimately a "can they" - the benefit of Android Auto and Car Play is that if a new feature requires improved hardware som…

I don't see why they would do that. Outside of safety or security updates, why would they? Updated infotainment is a feature of a new car.

> Updated infotainment is a feature of a new car.

The whole point of the android and iPhone car thingies is that is not the case. New features no longer require buy a new car, you just get the free software update with your phone, and get whatever new features your phone hardware supports. Maybe you eventually get to the point your phone can no longer provide all the features of the OS update, but if you really want the new features a new phone costs substantially less than a new phone (even the stupid expensive top end ones).

That's why everyone is going "wtf" about GM saying "we're punting android and iOS car APIs". It's not just that car companies don't have a good track record of software design and UI, it's that they don't have any motivation to improve any car after it has been sold.

Re: Ex-Apple VP Mike Abbott Joins General Motors as Exec Vice President, Software

#145

Post by tgma »

zen_1 wrote: post #130
tgma wrote: post #128

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Definitely more than 10 years behind Google and probably going to stay shit for foreseeable future based on their hiring patterns and pay. Apple routinely claims they can underpay new hires compared to Google and Facebook and they have to accept it because "it is a privilege to work at Apple." Probably you can hire a bunch of cultists with that message to work closer to iPhone and UI but I doubt the hardcore infrastr…

I'd prefer working at Apple to F/G because at least Apple pretend to care about user's privacy, and their business model isn't inherently opposed to it. I'm an android/PC user by choice, so working on the iWidgets doesn't hold much appeal for me.

This is not a question that warrants much abstract analysis. Only relevant if you have simultaneous offers or work at one of the companies and get an offer at the other and are faced with the concrete numbers and a choice.

Me personally wouldn’t prefer working at a place with sucky tooling (build systems, code review, testing) and comparatively inferior average infrastructure engineering while taking a lower pay simply because the company is great at building iPhones. Sure I commend their attitude towards privacy and I am a happy customer.

Re: Ex-Apple VP Mike Abbott Joins General Motors as Exec Vice President, Software

#146

Post by oblio »

jjav wrote: post #136
LarryDarrell wrote: post #102

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I understand. There are many consumers like you. We are simply speaking different languages because we value different things based on what we want from a vehicle. My perspective is one from someone that does their own car maintenance/repair and has only owned used cars. When I look at a new car or truck today, I'm looking at components that are most affected by entropy. Of the features you listed, how many are likel…

> I'm looking at components that are most affected by entropy This! I have difficulty understanding why more people don't view products from this angle, as this is the thinking that dominates my thoughts when considering any purchase. Everything is going to break, that's physical reality. So how easy (cost & availability) will it be to fix? What are the consequences of things breaking? Is it just that one feature tha…

Most people probably sell their cars after 5 years or so.

Edit: 8 years ( https://www.germaincars.com/average-length-of-car-ownership/ )

Re: Ex-Apple VP Mike Abbott Joins General Motors as Exec Vice President, Software

#147

Post by tgma »

letsdothisagain wrote: post #89
philwelch wrote: post #79

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Worth pointing out that GM actually failed as a business and only survived the 2008 recession because the government briefly nationalized it as part of an economic bailout. In a free market GM wouldn’t exist.

It's worth pointing out that the free market would replace it with BYD. Economics are politics, and as such are a little more complicated than that one chart you saw in high school.

Somehow BYD is the product of free market in a way that GM isn’t? I think that’s a ridiculous characterization for any Chinese company operating at scale.

Re: Ex-Apple VP Mike Abbott Joins General Motors as Exec Vice President, Software

#148

Post by greedo »

justin66 wrote: post #115
LarryDarrell wrote: post #26

The 2022 Chevy Silverado I rented died at 488 miles on the odometer. The roadside assistance mechanic said the transmission "lost data connection to the engine". Later, a tow truck had to drag it onto it's flatbed as the rear wheels were locked up. Also, apparently the tailgate is electric now. And for some reason it stopped working when the transmission died. Also also, there is no way to turn the truck off? When it…

> I am gobsmacked at just how terrible modern vehicles are. Okay, but in fairness to modern cars as a whole, how long has it been since Chevrolet was considered a high-quality brand by the market? Forty-five years?

Even longer than that unless you're lumping Cadillac (or other GM makes) in it.

Re: Ex-Apple VP Mike Abbott Joins General Motors as Exec Vice President, Software

#149

Post by lallysingh »

olliej wrote: post #144
lallysingh wrote: post #113

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I don't see why they would do that. Outside of safety or security updates, why would they? Updated infotainment is a feature of a new car.

> Updated infotainment is a feature of a new car. The whole point of the android and iPhone car thingies is that is not the case. New features no longer require buy a new car, you just get the free software update with your phone, and get whatever new features your phone hardware supports. Maybe you eventually get to the point your phone can no longer provide all the features of the OS update, but if you really want…

Do you mean new apps?

Re: Ex-Apple VP Mike Abbott Joins General Motors as Exec Vice President, Software

#150

Post by foobiekr »

zen_1 wrote: post #133
foobiekr wrote: post #88

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Compensation and title are basically everything once you leave the IC role. Trampolining through GM is just fine if you want to land at some other mega company after. IMHO, most tech ICs have literally no idea what comp packages look like when you get out of the bottom and middle. Sure, they know that Pichai is making $220M a year but they recognize that's unusual. Making $10M+ a year, though, isn't that unusual in t…

I'm a newgrad, would you mind giving me a rough overview estimate of a full career's comp growth (excluding outliers like HFT)? What I'm seeing in my cohort is newgrad offers ranging from $100k-$300k/year (FB rockstar return intern offer), with an expected promotion/jobhop to mid level dev in 2 years and then senior in another 2-3 (assuming you do well). What happens after that?

My suggestion to you would be to focus on your long term strategic goals. Job hopping optimizes near term but will leave you without a solid network of allies and no big base of trusted lieutenants to draw from when you are trying to build a team.

That last one matters a lot when you find yourself at 40 and needing to staff your startup with people you trust that you know are good because you've worked long enough with them to know their work ethic and that they can do the job and will stick it out all the way to shipping v2.

Your career is more than comp.

North of a million a year TC is possible in most large tech companies outside of FANG for distinguished engineer roles.

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