GM pays $40 million to bring on Tesla alum Sterling Anderson General Motors Co. wooed new executive Sterling Anderson with a $40 million hiring package to leave his Silicon Valley autonomous vehicle startup and join the Detroit automaker in 2025, according to a financial disclosure filed Monday. Anderson received $16 million in 2025 as the company's executive vice president, global product and chief product officer, according to a U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission filing. The rest of the $24 million will be paid out this year and next. His new-hire package reflects the price GM is willing to pay to bring on experienced tech leaders to speed its progress on self-driving vehicles, EVs, software and other technology as it fights to compete with Chinese automakers. As a top GM executive, Anderson is among potential candidates to succeed CEO Mary Barra, who has led the Detroit automaker since 2014. "The Compensation Committee structured a compensation package for Mr. Anderson that it believed was necessary and appropriate to recruit him to GM from his prior company where he had an influential leadership role and a significant equity interest," according to the filing. "The Committee also sought to ensure that this package offered a competitive and attractive opportunity relative to other possible opportunities he had in the technology industry." Anderson left self-driving commercial vehicle company Aurora Innovation Inc., which he co-founded, to join GM. He previously led Tesla Inc.'s Model X and Autopilot programs. For comparison, Barra received nearly $30 million in 2025. Her total compensation was close to $29.5 million in 2024. President Mark Reuss brought in more than $19 million last year, also up from about $18.5 million in 2024. Both Barra, 64, and Reuss, 62, became eligible for early retirement at the end of last year, according to the filing.