DETROIT -- General Motors appears to be stealing some thunder from its largest American rival.
Ahead of Ford Motor Co. CEO Jim Hackett addressing Wall Street analysts and investors Tuesday afternoon about his vision for the company, GM has used the past 24 hours to reaffirm its own agenda.
GM CEO Mary Barra outlined her vision of an autonomous, zero-emission future Tuesday morning in a post on LinkedIn, a day after GM announced it will launch 20 new all-electric and fuel cell vehicles by 2023 -- stealing headlines and making sure the automaker is at the forefront of investors' minds.
Nothing in Barra's post was profoundly new, but it emphasized GM as being ahead of competitors in terms of connectivity, mass-producing "affordable" electric cars and autonomous vehicle testing.
"And, as America's largest automaker, GM has the right scale," Barra wrote. "In contrast to companies that have built a small number of self-driving cars, our 150 manufacturing facilities can produce some 9 million vehicles a year, giving GM the capability to test and manufacture the next generation of electric and autonomous vehicles at scale."
That's likely an indirect shot at Tesla Inc. and other smaller automakers more than Ford. However, Ford last confirmed in December that it was testing only 30 autonomous vehicles.
A Ford spokesman on Tuesday said the company's autonomous vehicle plans have changed since investing $1 billion in artificial intelligence startup Argo AI, but did not provide a specific amount of vehicles being tested.
Hackett, during an event Monday in Grand Rapids, Mich., said he would not yet ride in an autonomous car on public roads, although the automaker remains "on track" to deliver a self-driving car of its own in 2021.
Barra's post also reiterated comments made Monday by GM product head Mark Reuss and other officials about the automaker delivering on its EV and autonomous vehicle plans.
"General Motors believes the future is all-electric. A world free of automotive emissions," said Reuss, GM executive vice president of global product development, purchasing and supply chain. "These aren't just words in a war of press releases. We are far along in our plan to lead the way to that future world."
When asked by reporters Monday about the timing of the EV and fuel cell announcement, a GM spokesman downplayed the timing having to do anything with what was occurring outside of the company.
"We've actually had the need and desire to have this on the schedule for awhile, and we think it's about time we start letting people in on this story," he said.
GM's tactics, deliberate or not, appear to be getting Wall Street's attention.
GM shares have reached an all-time high following the announcements and Bank of America Merrill Lynch raising its rating for GM to "buy" from "neutral."
GM shares gained 3 percent to close at $43.45 on Tuesday, while Ford closed up 2 percent to $12.34 per share.
Ford released Hackett's plans later Tuesday afternoon.
Michael Martinez contributed.
