Ford Designing Low-Cost EV Platform, Led By Ex Tesla Exec

According to TechCrunch, former Tesla and Ford Advanced EV development boss Alan Clarke is leading a Ford skunkworks project to develop a low-cost electric vehicle. In an earnings call, Ford CEO Jim Farley revealed that a previously unknown "skunkworks team" has been working on the development of a new electric vehicle platform.

Engineers from Auto Motive Power, or AMP, the EV power startup acquired by the automaker in November 2023, will contribute to this new flexible platform, which will serve as the foundation for several upcoming vehicles. Anil Paryani, the founder of AMP, worked with Clarke at Tesla for about five years and is also involved in the skunkworks project.

While the specifics of these new vehicles are unknown, Farley stated that the platform's primary goal is low cost. He also stated that the automaker is adjusting its capital, shifting and focusing more on smaller electric vehicle offerings.

“This is important because we quietly made a bet two years ago and developed a super talented skunkworks team to create a low-cost electric vehicle platform,” he added.

Farley clarified that the goal of the new platform is to take on affordable Teslas and Chinese OEMs, whom he views as the most formidable rivals in the EV industry, as reported by Motor1. This comes at a time when Tesla's Model Y and Model 3 are significantly less expensive than Ford's Mustang Mach-E.
Ford revamped its business into three separate divisions in 2022: the Ford Pro commercial division, the Ford Blue hybrid and internal combustion engine division, and the Ford Model e, which is concentrated on connectivity and electric vehicles.

The company's growth in Ford Pro and sales of gasoline and hybrid cars provide the profits. Ford's earnings are still being negatively impacted by its electric car division. Hopefully, the new skunkworks-developed platform will focus on profit from any angle.