Ford brought back 350 engineers to correct the mistakes made by its AI systems.

      Ford has brought back 350 engineers after its AI systems failed to match the quality expected by the company, leading to a notable achievement—securing the top position in JD Power's quality rankings for the first time in 16 years. Charles Poon, Ford’s VP of vehicle hardware engineering, indicated that the company overestimated its ability to integrate AI while maintaining high product quality. This revelation, originally reported by The Verge, coincides with Ford topping the mainstream brands in JD Power’s initial quality ranking.

      The issue wasn't that the AI itself was broken, Poon clarified, but rather that seasoned employees departed before their valuable knowledge could be passed into the systems designed to take their place. Without the engineering insights built into the training data, Ford’s automated systems highlighted weak inputs instead of identifying design flaws. To address this, Ford rehired, newly hired, and promoted 350 experienced engineers.

      While Poon did not specify why these engineers left, it's evident that Ford has reduced its workforce by approximately 5,300 salaried positions since its peak in 2020, reflecting a broader trend affecting Detroit's automotive sector, which has seen over 20,000 white-collar jobs eliminated. CEO Jim Farley has publicly stated that AI “will replace literally half of all white-collar workers in the US,” a statement that has been complicated by the ongoing quality issues the company faces.

      The returning engineers are now mentoring junior staff, restoring data pipelines for Ford’s AI training, and improving the automated systems they were initially meant to replace. Ford has also established a dedicated software quality assurance team of 40 and added over 100,000 AI-driven automated tests to detect edge cases and reassess software changes late in the development process.

      This improvement has allowed Ford to achieve the leading position in JD Power’s 2026 initial quality study, which tracks issues reported by vehicle owners in the first 90 days of ownership. Ford reported 152 problems per 100 vehicles, surpassing Nissan and Buick. The F-150, Mustang, and Super Duty have each been recognized as the best in their respective segments for the second consecutive year.

      However, this victory does not erase Ford's troubled history. The automaker has led the industry in recalls this year, announcing 51 recalls that affect more than 11 million vehicles—over twice as many as the next largest manufacturer. This situation adds to a growing list of companies realizing that the absence of human judgment in AI-driven processes can lead to issues that the technology cannot independently resolve.

      This situation arises during a period when AI firms and policymakers are urgently trying to understand the implications for workers. Recently, OpenAI, Anthropic, Amazon, and Microsoft supported RAISE US, a $500 million nonprofit led by former commerce secretary Gina Raimondo, aimed at retraining American workers for the AI-driven economy. Ford's experience indicates that the more challenging issue may not be retraining but identifying which employees are essential to retain.