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It's been nearly a decade since GM and Chrysler filed for bankruptcy - dark days in our region leaving us with a painful and valuable lesson. Don't put all your eggs in one basket.

Today, Google, Twitter and Microsoft are tech companies that have opened shop in Detroit. Now Waymo, the autonomous car company, says Detroit is its choice for a factory to build their Level 4 self-driving vehicles.

"We can take that same story to places around the world both domestically and internationally, and say this is why our city makes sense," said Kevin Johnson, Detroit Economic Growth Corporation.

Johnson just returned from China where he met with auto executives to rev up the momentum in making the Motor City into the Mobility City.

"Because of the connectivity in the areas of automotive and mobility, they are one of our largest trading partners in terms of the supply chain," Johnson said. "So we went to make sure that we had a clear understanding of how the supply chain connects to Detroit."


So how to convince companies to build their tech and mobility in Detroit instead of California? It may not be as tall of an order as in the past. There's room for growth.

"There is capacity left to be built, no doubt about that," Johnson said. "It could be in the form of a new battery technology for electric vehicles. It could be in the form of the autonomous vehicle technology. It's kind of now in my opinion and we are now just strengthening the base."

FOX 2: "What stands in the way?"

"Attitude can't stand in the way," Johnson said. "I think shortsightedness can stand in the way, parochialism can stand in the way. "



Ford Motor Company created its new Innovation Center at the old Michigan Central Station is another sign to the world that this is the place to do it.



To make this region the central hub of innovation, infrastructure and education have to be fixed as quickly as the roads.

"Show me the city or the state that invest in its people," Johnson said, "and I'll show you a successful state."