Ford unveiled its new 2021 F-150 on Thursday, a hybrid truck loaded with features, and reportedly able to travel 700 miles on a tank of gas.
"This is the first major update for five or six years for us. It's America's best-selling vehicle, and we have to keep it, not just updated, but the best-in-class," said Jim Farley, Ford's chief operating officer.
Despite upgrades like over-the-air system software updates, the full-size pickup truck still relies partially on gas as fuel in an era of all-electric vehicles coming from the likes of Tesla or Nikola.
However, Farley noted that the auto giant has plans for that space as well.
"In the next 24 months, we will launch an all-electric F-150, and we aren't stopping there. We're also going to launch an all-electric transit van," he said. "The hybrid F-150 we're launching this fall is going to be a great bridge to that."
Even as Ford looks to the future, the automaker, like everyone else, had to contend with the present coronavirus pandemic, requiring changes and upgrades to their manufacturing operations in order to get back up to speed.
"It was a really difficult time for Ford, but we used that downtime to prepare for what we're going through now, which is getting up to full production," Farley said about the past several months. "This week is a marquee week for us. We're up almost to full production in North America, we're building production in Western Europe and in China, around the world."
He also explained how Ford drastically reconfigured its facilities to prevent the spread of coronavirus and made changes including aggressive cleaning, temperature checks, food delivered directly to workers, and customized personal protective equipment.
"We've had to put social distancing into our plants and redesign all the workspaces," he explained. "It's been months and months of planning, and it's all paid off now."
Starbucks’ decision to restrict its restrooms to paying customers has flushed out a wider problem: a patchwork of restroom use policies that varies by state and city. Starbucks announced last week a new code of conduct that says people need to make a purchase if they want to hang out or use the restroom. The coffee chain's policy change for bathroom privileges has left Americans confused and divided over who gets to go and when. The American Restroom Association, a public toilet advocacy group, was among the critics. Rules about restroom access in restaurants vary by state, city and county. The National Retail Federation says private businesses have a right to limit restroom use.
President Donald Trump is talking up a joint venture investing up to $500 billion for infrastructure tied to artificial intelligence by a new partnership formed by OpenAI, Oracle and SoftBank. The new entity, Stargate, will start building out data centers and the electricity generation needed for the further development of the fast-evolving AI in Texas, according to the White House. The initial investment is expected to be $100 billion and could reach five times that sum. While Trump has seized on similar announcements to show that his presidency is boosting the economy, there were already expectations of a massive buildout of data centers and electricity plants needed for the development of AI.
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