The Globe and Mail reports in its Thursday, Nov. 16, edition that chief executive officer Mary Barra says General Motors plans to launch a new family of electric vehicles in 2021 that will cost less to build and make a profit for the automaker. A Reuters dispatch to The Globe reports that Ms. Barra's plans are a direct challenge to money-losing electric-vehicle specialist Tesla. Electric and autonomous vehicles are widely seen as the keystones of future transport, but Tesla, Ford Motor and others are still working out how to make money on them. Ms. Barra says GM is looking to break out of that pattern by developing an all-new electric-vehicle platform that will accommodate multiple sizes and segments, to be sold by different GM brands in the United States and China. In October, GM said it planned to launch 20 new electric vehicles by 2023. By comparison, rival Ford has said it plans to introduce 13 "electrified" vehicles by 2022. Ms. Barra says GM aims to be selling one million electric vehicles a year by 2026, many of them in China. GM's cost reduction efforts on electric vehicles centre on a new battery system that will be more than 30 per cent cheaper than the one that powers the Chevrolet Bolt.