Ford Motor Co. CEO Jim Farley tells Bloomberg Technology that Ford will not be selling its $8 billion stake in Rivian, at least not right now. He made it clear that Ford is leaving all its options open for the time being. Farley certainly had plenty to share related to Tesla, Elon Musk, charging networks, commercial EVs and the upcoming F-150 Lightning.
Ford's Farley has been in the news often of late. This is primarily due to the automaker's impressive EV push, which continues to seem even more impressive every time Farley talks about Ford's future. In fact, while Ford hasn't yet launched its F-150 Lightning, its market cap soared to $100 billion for the first time ever.
The CEO says Ford is diving into software and physical services, which it has never really focused on in the past. He adds that customers have been begging for this for years, and now is the time. He's talking specifically about financing and EV charging, among other related items.
Farley has been open in the past about the fact that Tesla is leading the way, and it seems he knows exactly what Ford needs to focus on to follow suit. As the CEO explains Ford's future plans, he says Ford is going to offer a comprehensive charging network "just like Elon did with Tesla." Farley is clearly a very smart man, and he knows that mentioning Tesla and Musk, as well as appealing to Tesla's fanbase, could be major keys to Ford's future success.
As the interview moves on, Farley says the chip shortage is not going away, and that Ford is beginning to see other supply shortage issues looming. He also says Ford's EVs use many more chips than its gas-powered cars, which complicates the situation further. Nonetheless, he says 40 percent of Ford's sales will be EVs in 2030. Farley says Ford isn't waiting to scale like many of its rivals, but rather, it's starting now and scaling now.
Bloomberg Technology points out that Farley congratulated Elon Musk for getting the TIME Person of the Year award. The host asks Farley what he's learning from Musk. Farley says what he's learned most is what it takes to succeed in this "digital connected electric product." He adds that it requires talents and know-how that are much different than what Ford has done for over 100 years.
We can honestly say that this is one of the better interviews we've watched in a long time, and while it's not too long, there's a ton of valuable information. Check it out for all the rest of the details. Then, head down to our comment section and share your takeaways.
