Hatching the Automobile’s Future in a Cloistered Los Angeles Lab

New York Times - WorldCenter-LeftEN 11 min read 100% complete by Jack EwingDecember 11, 2025 at 11:00 AM

AI Summary

long article 11 min

In 2021, Doug Field left Apple to lead Ford's electric vehicle and digital design efforts, aiming to help the company compete with rapidly growing Chinese automakers. To achieve this, Field established a secretive "skunk works" lab near Los Angeles, with a satellite office in Silicon Valley. He recruited talent from Tesla, Rivian, Lucid, and other tech companies, promising creative freedom to foster innovation. This independent team was shielded from traditional corporate interference, tasked with redesigning Ford's fleet to meet the challenges posed by the changing automotive landscape and the dominance of Chinese electric vehicle production. The goal is to prevent Ford from becoming obsolete in the face of this global shift.

Key Entities & Roles

Key Player Opposition Context

Lucid 30% Los Angeles 30% Rivian 40% Silicon Valley ×240% Tesla ×250% Doug Field ×370% Ford Motor Company ×680%

Keywords

electric vehicles 100% automotive industry 90% ford motor company 80% chinese automakers 70% silicon valley 60% doug field 50% automotive start-up 50% skunk works 40%

Sentiment Analysis

Neutral

Score: 0.10

Source Transparency

Source

New York Times - World

Political Lean

Center-Left (-0.30)

Far LeftCenterFar Right

Classification Confidence

90%

Geographic Perspective

Silicon Valley

This article was automatically classified using rule-based analysis. The political bias score ranges from -1 (far left) to +1 (far right).

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electric vehicles automotive industry ford motor company chinese automakers silicon valley doug field automotive start-up skunk works

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