Ford Motor Company CEO Jim Farley acknowledges that the impact of artificial intelligence will inevitably reach blue-collar workers. However, speaking at a recent media roundtable, he pointed out that when this technology enters factories, repair shops, and various skilled trade workplaces, it will primarily play the role of a "partner" 鈥?that is, serving as an assistive tool to help people complete more complex tasks, build professional skills faster, and help employers address the severe shortage of skilled talent.

Farley said at the roundtable: "I think a lot of these jobs will both use AI and be protected by AI." But he added: "If you're in a financial job working with spreadsheets, working in a call center, or you're a junior programmer 鈥?then in this 'first phase' of AI development, those jobs will undoubtedly change or even be eliminated."

Farley's distinction is clear: AI is more likely to rapidly disrupt routine, screen-based, standardized knowledge work, while replacing electricians, technicians, mechanics, and skilled factory tradespeople will take much longer. He noted that while these positions will be transformed by AI, automation technology, and software, they still depend on people who can diagnose faults, apply practical judgment, and work safely around complex physical systems.

Farley said this transformation is already underway within Ford. The company employs more than 10,000 skilled tradespeople, accounting for roughly 20% of its 56,000 United Auto Workers (UAW) member employees. These workers' roles are moving beyond traditional conveyor belt and mechanical system maintenance toward robot repair, fiber optic handling, automated equipment maintenance, and the operation of increasingly digitalized manufacturing operations.

Farley said that in modern automotive plants, the line between skilled tradespeople and engineers is becoming increasingly blurred. He said: "In these new operating models, it's hard to define when the work of an engineer (or manufacturing engineer) ends and where the work of a skilled tradesperson begins."

In Ford's newer manufacturing operations, skilled tradespeople may be responsible for maintaining large robotic casting systems, configuring digital manufacturing processes, or troubleshooting battery production equipment. Farley noted that some battery equipment maintenance work is closer to operations in the semiconductor manufacturing sector than to conventional work in traditional auto plants.

Ford also uses AI and augmented reality to support technicians in repairing vehicles. For example, he cited the process of removing an engine from a Ford Super Truck, a job that can take two days and requires extensive disassembly. Ford Pro is using AI to help dealers who have never done this before complete the work faster.

"If you want to take apart a large pickup truck, it takes two days to pull the engine out. The whole truck is torn apart," he explained. "A lot of people don't have that capability."

"We use AI to guide them: 'Okay, do this, do that,'" he added. "They're good technicians, they just lack the relevant experience 鈥?after all, they've never done this kind of work before."

The views of manufacturing executives like Farley present a picture of AI application that is distinctly different from the common narrative of "white-collar job automation." In their view, the core problem facing manufacturing, construction, and infrastructure sectors is a shortage of qualified labor. AI can boost the productivity of the existing workforce, reduce time spent on repetitive tasks, and help inexperienced workers become competent faster.

Farley emphasized that the new generation of skilled workers will need more knowledge of data, software, programming, and automation. However, this could also change training models, enabling workers to rely on AI systems when facing unfamiliar equipment or operating procedures.

Farley compared this concern to the historical skepticism workers held toward "time and motion studies": management may view such systems as efficiency tools, while employees may see them as a means of surveillance, a source of increased work intensity, or a threat to their jobs.

The Ford CEO recalled an experience from early in his career when he was conducting "time and motion studies" 鈥?a traditional industrial management method that records the time workers need to complete tasks in order to find ways to improve efficiency. He recalled that during a break, a worker discovered he was being timed and confronted him.

"A guy three years older than me asked: 'What, are you trying to take my job?' That's the classic tension around efficiency we've always faced," he said. "I think things really aren't that different."