Ford CEO Jim Hackett feels that once the roadways become connected, only the “smart” will survive as future cars will rely heavily on brainpower to function.
Hackett is pushing to accelerate Ford’s move into connected, electric and autonomous fields, trying to reverse a three-year stock slide with investors perceiving the blue oval as currently trailing behind GM, reports Autonews.
“Ford’s future is not about giving up the car,” said Hackett at the Michigan CEO Summit in Detroit. He then added that there are “no dumb cars in the future.”
This year, GM shares have gone up by 21%, whereas Ford has fallen 0.6% – the latter remains dependent on profits from big truck sales. However, moving forward, Ford is hoping that new mobility areas will start paying dividends.
“We have to evolve these things to be ever smarter,” added Hackett, mentioning how cars in the future will be able to see things that humans can’t.
“For a while, we didn’t see the computer as an integrated aspect. Now, think about it, my vehicle is a rolling computer.”
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