Ford Creates Unit to Develop Autonomous Vehicles and New Technology

Ford Motor Co. Chief Executive Officer Jim Farley has reshaped the company’s internal operations to accelerate development of autonomous vehicles and foster new technology businesses.

Farley formed Ford Next late last year and put it under the direction of Franck Louis-Victor, a hard-charging specialist in new businesses hired last June from Renault SA. The unit contains Ford’s stake in autonomous-auto startup Argo AI and will develop startups in mobility services and other businesses. A joint venture that the automaker struck in January with security specialist ADT Inc. came out of Ford Next…

Farley this month announced he was splitting carmaking at the company into two operations: Model e for electric models and Ford Blue for traditional internal combustion engine vehicles. He also has created Ford Pro, which focuses on the highly profitable business of commercial vans and trucks.

The automaker’s self-driving unit, Ford Autonomous Vehicles LLC, is now part of Ford Next.