Contracts, Context, and Cars: General Motors' Governance Blueprint for the Agentic AI Era

General Motors spent a century perfecting cars and now perfects software and AI. Sherri reveals how GM is building a governance model for the agentic AI era — moving from reactive controls to automated data contracts, expanding from data to AI governance, and creating a unified foundation that powers everything from connected vehicles to predictive manufacturing.

Key takeaways:

• Data contracts automate governance expectations instead of relying on reactive controls and manual checks

• AI governance requires expanding beyond data to include models, datasets, and agent behavior with unified frameworks

• Automotive transformation demands governance embedded in production systems, not bolted on afterward

• Connected vehicle telemetry and predictive manufacturing require trusted data pipelines with automated quality checks

• Ecosystem-first approaches across Databricks, Microsoft, and Atlan enable governance that scales with business complexity