Out Of Left Field

Doug Field, an automotive and technology veteran who has led Ford’s electric-vehicle and technology efforts for nearly five years, is leaving ‌the motor company.

Doug had a fun title at Ford.

He was the CEVDDO (Chief EV, Digital, and Design Officer). You won’t likely find that job on Glassdoor.

Doug started his career as an engineer at Ford in 1987.

After leaving Ford in 1993, Doug worked at Johnson and Johnson Medical for three years in process development.

While at J&J, he met Segway inventor Dean Kamen, who was working on a project called the iBOT, a gyroscopic-powered wheelchair that could climb stairs.

Doug worked with Dean to design and launch the Segway in 1999.

In 2008, Doug brought his automotive engineering sensibilities to Apple’s hardware design.

Five years later, Doug jumped from Apple to Tesla to help Elon launch the Tesla Model 3.

He left the company before Tesla hit Elon’s stated goal of making 5,000 Model 3 sedans per week. In response to his departure, Elon said that he holds Doug in high regard.

Doug returned to Apple to head up the now-defunct Project Titan, Apple’s car project.

Then Doug was recruited back into Ford.

“When I first came to Ford, I had a very specific goal in mind,” Doug said. “If we can figure out how to take the blank-sheet startup mentality and capability to innovate and combine that with a brand with Ford’s history, and with the industrial might of a company like this, we would really be something to be reckoned with.”

While at Ford, Doug was instrumental in helping them “think different” about manufacturing, designing a new way to build vehicles. He led Ford’s efforts to revolutionize EV assembly by replacing traditional lines with a modular “assembly tree” approach. Three parallel sub-assembly lines (front, rear, and structural battery) are built independently and joined at the end, reducing production time by 15% and using 40% fewer workstations. This system cuts 20% of parts and 25% of fasteners, utilizing large castings and structural batteries.

The first vehicles built on the new Universal Electric Vehicle (UEV) platform are expected to reach customers in 2027.

When Ford announced its new, fancy assembly line plans last August, I suggested that when we look back at this era of automotive history, we might weigh Doug’s impact on the industry as more significant than Elon Musk’s.

Doug will have moved on from Ford before those next-gen Ford EVs actually roll off that fancy assembly line.

While speaking with reporters, Ford CEO Jim Farley praised Doug for building a strong team that he believes will shape Ford’s future capabilities.

When asked whether it was inopportune to leave before the UEV went into production, Doug said he was content to “pass the baton” to the company’s industrial and manufacturing team.

“It’s actually quite an opportune time, because I came to Ford to partner with people who know how to industrialize at massive scale,” Doug said.

“The product has reached a level of maturity where I am completely dependent on the experts at Ford—those who know how to bring it to a factory like Kentucky, run it at high volume, build it with the highest quality, and keep it affordable. That is really why this transition point is an opportune time for me to pass the baton and pass the torch.”

His repetition of the word opportune makes me wonder how opportune it actually was.

Doug is passing that baton to another of Ford’s former Tesla executives, Alan Clarke.

It isn’t clear what Doug will do next.

Rest assured, wherever he’s going, whatever he’s doing, he’s going to make an impact that will last a generation.

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Audi will deepen its partnership with ​SAIC for future generations of models under their ‌co-owned new brand, with four to be launched in China in the coming years. reuters.com

Stellantis is discussing reviving its partnership with Dongfeng Motors for joint production in Europe and China. autonews.com

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Elon props up Cybertruck sales by selling them to his other companies. bloomberg.com

Tesla is recruiting semiconductor engineers in Taiwan for its Terafab artificial intelligence chip complex. reuters.com

Tesla’s big spring software update introduces a new Self-Driving app and a voice-activated ‘Hey Grok’ voice command. mashable.com

SpaceX has secured regulatory approval to operate Starlink dishes with an even wider field of view to help maintain connections with orbiting satellites for longer periods. pcmag.com

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Robotic dogs are now guarding Bayer’s 8,000-acre Hawaiian corn farm. futurism.com

A humanoid robot was captured on video chasing a group of wild boars in Warsaw, Poland, in a bizarre encounter that went viral. foxbusiness.com

A Chinese humanoid robot has demonstrated real-time tennis rallying, marking a step forward in embodied artificial intelligence. interestingengineering.com

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Car companies are repurposing battery factories to make battery energy storage systems (BESS) to meet AI’s need for cheap electricity. reuters.com

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In the US, as fuel prices rise, people are resorting to drilling holes in gas tanks to steal gasoline. washingtonpost.com

Lloyds Metals and Energy has successfully converted one of its massive, 650-ton-class Liebherr R 996 excavators from diesel to fully electric. electrek.co

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The Pentagon met with executives at Ford and GM to see whether the auto industry could help the US military acquire vehicles, munitions, or other hardware more quickly and at lower cost. nytimes.com

Ford has a transmission problem. reuters.com

The Mercedes EQS is back with more range and an improved steering system. theverge.com

BMW has confirmed that it is ending US allocation of the BMW iX, while it will still be sold in other markets. bmwblog.com

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Caterpillar has acquired self-driving electric tractor startup Monarch Tractor. bloomberg.com

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Waymo is taking steps to get its robotaxis on Toronto streets. Toronto politicians aren’t sure they want that. cbc.ca

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