Ford Rehires 350 Engineers After Finding AI Alone Wasn't Enough
The company is doubling down on AI while rehiring veteran engineers, signalling that human expertise remains critical even as automation reshapes manufacturing.
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Contrary to what people widely assume, artificial intelligence and automation are not infallible technologies. And American automobile manufacturer Ford just publicly admitted to it. In a rare move, Ford Motors took a human approach to solving its AI efficiency challenge, bringing back experienced “grey beard” engineers to train the next generation of technical talent instead of relying solely on automation.
A big believer in AI and automation, Charles Poon, VP of Vehicle Hardware Engineering at Ford, revealed that while the company introduced AI, hoping to increase production, it miscalculated the value of skilled talent.
“Artificial intelligence is a fantastic tool, but it’s only as good as the information you use to train it,” Poon said, according to reports. “Over prior years, we didn’t pay as much attention as we should have to the experience of our most knowledgeable engineers who have been with us through many product cycles.”
He revealed that some of the company’s most experienced engineers left before their accumulated knowledge could be leveraged for the automated systems. This resulted in a new approach–making around 350 hires, new or rehires, in the past three years.
“Mistakenly, we thought that by just introducing artificial intelligence and adjusting the design requirements that we had, that would produce a high-quality product,” Poon said.
For Kumar Galhotra, chief operating officer of Ford, engineers have been “at the heart” of Ford’s efforts to turn around quality problems. He acknowledged that, while the company relied extensively on automated quality systems, it had yet to achieve the desired results. Galhotra said. “We brought back technical specialists,” and “they hunt for failure points before a part ever reaches the plant floor.”
On Thursday, Ford topped the list of mass-market brands in the J.D. Power Initial Quality Study—a feat achieved after 16 years. “This is a proud day for everyone at Ford, and the result of years of intensive work across our company,” said Jim Farley, president and CEO, Ford.
As a result of veterans and new blood joining the workforce, Ford leaped ahead of industry stalwarts such as Toyota Motor and Honda Motor on the list— jumping from 10th place to the top of the list, the greatest improvement of any brand year over year.”
Its three models—the F-150 pickup, the Super Duty truck, and the Mustang sports car—emerged as winners in their respective categories.
While experiencing success, the manufacturer openly acknowledges its shortcomings. Reports indicate that Ford tops the U.S. automaker recall list in 2026, followed by Stellantis (which owns brands like Chrysler and Jeep), General Motors, Hyundai, and Toyota.
While course-correcting, the carmaker is not backing away from its AI investments. It has expanded its AI-powered testing, adding around 100,000 new evaluations to simulate a wider range of driving conditions.
“Because these tests are highly automated, even if we have a late change in the software, we can rapidly run back through the entire validation process to guarantee it works perfectly well before it reaches the customer,” Poon said.
