General Motors just made a huge investment in self-driving car technology.

The auto maker has acquired Cruise Automation, a San Francisco-based autonomous vehicle technology maker. The companies did not announce financial terms, but Fortune says the deal is valued at more than $1 billion between cash and stock.

GM said the acquisition will allow it to "accelerate" its autonomous vehicle development efforts.

"Fully autonomous vehicles can bring our customers enormous benefits in terms of greater convenience, lower cost, and improved safety for their daily mobility needs," GM President Dan Ammann, pictured above right with Cruise Automation co-founders Kyle Vogt (center) and Daniel Kan (left), said in a statement.

The move comes after GM in January invested $500 million in Lyft to help the Uber competitor beef up its ridesharing service. The companies are also working on what they call "on-demand autonomous vehicles."

As for its new acquisition, GM says Cruise will operate as an independent unit within its newly formed Autonomous Vehicle Development Team, and continue to be based in San Francisco. Founded in 2013, the company has "moved quickly to develop and test autonomous vehicle technology in San Francisco's challenging city environment," GM said.

Cruise Automation's Vogt, meanwhile, called the acquisition "a ground-breaking and necessary step toward rapidly commercializing autonomous vehicle technology."

Apparently, GM has other autonomous vehicle investments on the horizon as well.

"Cruise provides our company with a unique technology advantage that is unmatched in our industry," Mark Reuss, GM executive vice president of global product development, purchasing, and supply chain, said in a statement. "We intend to invest significantly to further grow the talent base and capabilities already established by the Cruise team."