Ford Opens Research And Innovation Center In Silicon Valley

There are a growing number of automakers that are setting up research centers in the Silicon Valley, and Ford has now announced that it is joining this list with the opening of its Research and Innovation Center in Palo Alto, California.

While Ford already had a small office in the area since 2012, the new 25,000-square-foot center illustrates an increased focus toward accelerating its mobility and autonomous vehicle research. President and CEO, Mark Fields, explained that the automaker wants to become a major player in the region and to take advantage of nearby university partners and app developers.

“What I’m so struck by, the valley here is a marketplace of ideas,” said Fields. “When you’re shopping for a house, it’s all about location, location, location. Here, it’s about being in the right neighborhood because of all the collection of companies. Our folks going to the coffee shops will run into folks from other companies and strike up conversation.”

The opening of Ford’s research center is yet another sign of the growing importance of tech in the auto industry. An increasing number of automakers are coming to the realization that the future of vehicles and transportation will be developed, at least in part, in Silicon Valley. The expanding interest and focus in advanced electronics, autonomous and semi-autonomous driving software, and increased connectivity are some of the key reasons that technological innovators and car manufacturers are working more closely with each other now than ever before.

Ford’s new center will be led by Dragos Maciuca, who previously worked at Apple, along with 21 engineers, app developers and scientists initially. The company explained that it plans to employ 125 staff members in the center by the end of this year. Fields explained that while most of the employees will be from California, some will move from Ford’s central offices in Dearborn.

The company already has similar research and innovation centers in Dearborn and Aachen, Germany. The facility in Dearborn focuses primarily on advanced electronics, human-machine interface, materials science, and big data and analytics. The center in Germany is focused on next-generation powertrain research, driver-assist technologies and active safety systems.

So, what sets the new Palo Alto facility apart from these existing centers? Ford executives explained that the wealth of collaborations that are available in Silicon Valley simply aren’t possible in its other locations.

“It’s definitely different than the culture in Detroit,” explained Raj Nair, Ford’s Product Chief. “The collaborations will be a great opportunity for us. We’re going to have one of the largest presences of any automotive company out here. We want to be a partner of choice out here and be part of this community.”

The company is expanding its partnership with Stanford University by donating a Fusion Hybrid to its engineering program in an effort to test driverless car algorithms to develop autonomous cars at a quicker pace. Fields has recently been quoted as saying that he expects a fully driverless car to be on the road within five years.

Ford is also working with Carnegie Mellon University to upgrade its voice-recognition systems, with researchers conducting tests on an embedded device that would respond to voice commands regardless of network strength. The company expects this to be available on cars in one to two years.

The team is also working on innovative technology that allows them to drive a vehicle remotely, where a researcher in the California lab can access real-time video to drive golf carts thousands of miles away at the Georgia Institute of Technology.

These fascinating undertakings illustrate the continuing evolution of technology advancements in the automotive industry.