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James Farley

President, Chief Executive Officer & Director, Ford Motor

Search every verified James Farley interview, podcast appearance, and on-the-record quote — each transcript cross-checked by AI and human review to confirm speaker identity. James Farley, President, CEO, and Director of Ford Motor, has recently participated in public discussions on U.S. manufacturing, skilled trades, and competition from Chinese automakers. In October 2026, Farley joined JPMorgan Chase CEO Jamie Dimon and Michigan Governor Gretchen Whitmer in Detroit to announce a partnership aimed at supporting domestic advanced manufacturing. Farley stated that Ford would commit $1 billion in purchasing to companies developing capabilities in areas such as advanced manufacturing, magnets, and rare earths, which he said had previously been sourced overseas. He described the effort as addressing a problem of offshoring and emphasized the need for U.S. independence in these areas. At the 50th Automotive News Congress in late September 2026, Farley discussed Ford’s quality turnaround, company culture, and the threat posed by Chinese automakers. He said he was confident in Ford’s direction due to cultural changes around accountability, cost, and quality, and noted ongoing stress testing of powertrains. Farley also warned that Chinese OEMs were exporting large numbers of vehicles globally, citing examples in Australia and Mexico, and called for a fair playing field while acknowledging Ford’s partnership with CATL for battery technology. Additionally, he highlighted a skilled trades shortage in the U.S., citing 1.7 million open jobs, and said Ford was working to address the issue through data collection and advocacy

Recent appearances

Verified interview transcripts

Notable quotes

“Sure. I don't think we have a choice. You know, it's very humbling to see the competitiveness now around the globe especially in China. But I have to say, I'm very optimistic. We developed a small group here in the U.S. in California. They out-innovated I think companies like the, you know, the really good EV companies in China. We're coming out with a $30,000 vehicle built in Louisville, Kentucky, engineered in Cali”

“We're trying to fix a problem onshoring things that were offshored in the name of pennies on the dollar to make here in the U.S. where we need it to be independent, even defend ourselves. Ford's going to commit a billion dollars of purchasing for new companies that are going to be building advanced manufacturing, new capabilities, even magnets and rare earths, that we used to buy overseas. And now we're going to buy ”

“Well, it's happening now. I mean Australia, if you're dealing Australia, 25% of the market is is Chinese. Not Chinese built in Chinese Chinese OEMs. Uh on the way to 50. Mexico, we can all drive to Mexico. Be a long drive. We get to know each other, but we could all get there in one day. Uh and 25% of all vehicles sold in in Mexico were sourced in China. Um this is not a theoretical thing. China will export 11 millio”

“Because today we have 1.7 million job shortage in skilled trades in the United States. 1.7 billion, it's going to go to 2 billion in 3 years. We are in a complete crisis when it comes to skilled trades. You want to run a dealership, you know. Uh if you if you're building something in America, you know. Uh we have a complete full-blown crisis. And we're we got together last year and we agreed that we're going to do th”

“Well, I think we happen to be in the most precious automotive zip code in the world. When I grew up in the industry for 40 years, there were three profit pools. There was the luxury profit pool, there was China, and there was North America. It's pretty clear to me that North America is now in the main profit pool of our industry globally on the vehicle side. Um, so and of course at Ford, yeah, I would say we're Ameri”

“We are in the second inning. 1.7 million open jobs. It is a crisis and we have to do something about it. Ford by itself, we can solve our problems. But that is not what we are trying to do. We have always been a company that has more ambition than the four walls of our company. We are putting focus on the facts. We have published our first report on the facts around skilled trade deficits in the U.S. Most college adv”

Other executives at Ford Motor

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