Ford ready to innovate, but not at the expense of customer needs

RANCHOS PALOS VERDES, California — Ford wants to innovate, but not at the expense of its customers and core business. That's the core takeaway from Ford CEO Mark Fields' sit down on Tuesday with Recode's Kara Swisher and Pete Kafka at the annual Code Conference.

"[We] want to keep up with the customer, not just keep up with the competition," Fields said.

While Fields talked about the company's investment in Silicon Valley and its Smart Mobility Initiative, he wouldn't share details on exactly what it's doing in the autonomous driving space and, especially, refused to reveal any details regarding conversations his company has had with Google and other companies in the tech industry. When Swisher pressed, Ford demurred and said "We talk with everybody." Read more...