Ford Skips Over Google Deal In CES Reveals

Ford unwrapped a bundle of tech news this morning to kickoff the Consumer Electronics Show in Las Vegas, from putting Apple Carplay and Android Auto in its vehicles to a competition for building mobile drone bases in pickups. But it did not reveal what we had said it might: a partnership with Google to build self-driving vehicles.

Instead, Ford CEO Mark Fields teased the idea of Ford’s autonomous partnerships, saying that when it comes to whether it would work with other firms, “the answer is yes,” then listed a group of universities and firms Ford has already partnered with. Asked after the presentation about Google, Fields had this to say:

“We work with a lot of different companies, and we continue to talk with a lot of different companies on a variety of subjects related to our Ford Smart Mobility plans…We keep those conversations private for competitive reasons, so we’re not going to comment on the speculation that’s been out there.”