Ford Hires BlackBerry Employees to Work on Connected Cars -- Update

By Christina Rogers and David George-Cosh 

Ford Motor Co. is hiring 400 engineers from BlackBerry Ltd.'s mobility-solutions unit to help develop internet-connected vehicles, giving a boost to the auto maker's software development efforts as it races to keep up with traditional rivals and tech companies.

About 100 of the BlackBerry engineers will come from the smartphone maker's office in Florida and another 300 will join from its Canadian operations in Ontario, according to people briefed on the matter.

The move, which the sources said will be announced Thursday morning at an event with Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau, would help Ford further build its computing expertise as the auto maker pivots to new ventures that rely more on vehicle connectivity.

Like other auto makers, Ford is rushing to bolster its ranks of software programmers and computer engineers, often battling other car makers and tech startups for talent.

Ford is also expected to announce Thursday new products for the company's engine plants in Windsor, Ontario, under the $700 million in investments committed by Ford last year as part of a new labor agreement with the union representing Canada's auto workers, Unifor.

A Ford spokesman said the company doesn't comment on speculation.

BlackBerry has trimmed down its mobility solutions unit after the company announced it would close its smartphone manufacturing operations to focus on its higher-margin software business and allow third-party vendors to build devices.

Ford has already forged close ties with BlackBerry, announcing in 2014 it would use the smartphone maker's QNX car software for its SYNC infotainment systems, instead of Microsoft Corp.

In October, Ford and BlackBerry announced they would expand the use of QNX software within the auto maker's fleet, including developing a dedicate operating system and program to control other software and related-security technology.

BlackBerry's QNX software currently operates in more than 60 million vehicles globally.

Ford in recent months has stepped up investment in its connected car and autonomous-driving expertise, aiming to build talent in-house rather than rely on outside suppliers to develop the technology.

Last month, the auto maker announced it was investing $1 billion in Argo AI, a startup consisting of former engineers from the autonomous-vehicle programs of Uber Technologies Inc. and Alphabet Inc. The investment, to be made during the next five years, is part of Ford's efforts to develop a self-driving car by 2021 and better attract the type of software talent accustom to working in small startups, rather than large corporations.

Write to Christina Rogers at [e-mail] and David George-Cosh at [e-mail]

(END) Dow Jones Newswires

March 30, 2017 10:37 ET (14:37 GMT)

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