General Motors has officially changed its global headquarters to the Hudson’s Detroit complex on Woodward Avenue, moving out of the aging Renaissance Center on the riverfront and back to the street where it first planted its flag in 1911. The new HQ sits in the “Block Building” section of Hudson’s Detroit, a mixed-use development with office space, retail, and a GM showroom at street level. Inside, GM Design leaned on themes from the Eero Saarinen–penned Technical Center in Warren, with clean lines, open floors, heritage displays, and a lot of glass looking out over downtown.
The company is taking roughly 200,000 square feet across multiple upper floors, with the lobby used as a rotating showcase for new Chevy, GMC, Buick, and Cadillac models. It is a sharp contrast with the half-empty RenCen towers the company is now working to redevelop with Bedrock, potentially turning parts of that site into apartments, hotel space, and more accessible riverfront.
A Bold HQ Move In A Messy Transition Era
Opening a glossy new HQ could look like pure victory lap, but GM’s reality is more complicated. On the one hand, 2025 was a banner year for its core brands. That strength is coming largely from trucks and SUVs, and GM is not walking away from them. It recently committed $500 million to upgrade a U.S. factory and double down on gas-powered vehicles.
At the same time, the electric side of the business is under pressure. GM has now disclosed a $6 billion loss, a clear sign that Ultium-based products and software-heavy programs like Cruise and Super Cruise are not yet paying off the way the company hoped.
Why Staying In Downtown Detroit Still Matters
GM could have quietly retreated to a cheaper suburban campus. Instead, it chose a brand-new skyscraper in the middle of downtown and wrapped the move in language about commitment to Detroit and Michigan, pointing to billions invested in local plants, suppliers, and jobs.
The new HQ gives it a more modern face to recruit software engineers and EV talent, puts a fresh GM storefront on Woodward, and shows that the company still wants to be seen as a central pillar of the city’s comeback story, not just a legacy name on a fading riverfront tower.
