The Blue Oval under CEO Jim Farley hasn’t been shy about its future intentions, which call for a massive spending spree to transition away from gasoline powered vehicles. Farley has previously named the companies Ford would metaphorically shank in the back if given the opportunity, a list that includes Volkswagen, Rivian, and Tesla. However, among that trio, only the latter has suffered any real personnel fallout from The Blue Oval’s substantial pivot to EVs, as Alan Clarke, a former engineering director for Tesla, is now a Ford employee, reports Automotive News.
Clarke spent 12 years at Tesla, working on new programs, and will apparently do similar things at The Blue Oval. He joined Ford last month and is part of advanced EV development, a fitting division for his expertise. As Ford Authority previously explained, this latest coup is clearly part of the automaker’s goal to recruit talent from rivals, as Doug Field, who is now Ford’s chief advanced technology and embedded systems officer, did a stint at Tesla before becoming head of Apple’s car program. That said, Ford has recruited from more traditional rivals in the recent past. The latest example being Martin Sander, who joined Ford Europe as head of passenger vehicles. Previously, the exec worked at various positions within Volkswagen.
Ford EV development is poised to receive another big boost. As Ford Authority recently reported, the company is currently flirting with spending an additional $10 to $20 billion to convert more plants to fully electric vehicle production and may even spin off some of the company to capitalize on Wall Street’s penchant for EV-focused automakers. This latest development comes after the company previously declared it would boost EV production to 600,000 vehicles annually by 2024. Clarke arrives at Ford as it aims to massively scale up its joint venture with SK Innovation and convert “Icons” like the Ford Bronco and Ford Explorer to fully electric power, after the 2022 Ford F-150 Lightning and 2022 Ford E-Transit.
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The race to the bottom continues!!