BlackBerry Shifts 400 Employees to Ford as Part of Connected-Car Partnership

Ford is hiring 400 employees from BlackBerry. The move expands on a partnership established last year.

The addition will double Ford’s connected-car team as the automaker advances its autonomous vehicle agenda. The shift will help BlackBerry complete its transition from hardware to software.

“The future of the automobile is all about embedded intelligence,” John Chen, Chief Executive Officer at BlackBerry, said last year. “I believe our expertise in secure embedded software makes us the preferred technology provider to put the smart in the car.”

BlackBerry owns QNX, which developers infotainment systems for motor vehicles.

“Ford is an industry leader and the opportunity to contribute our world-class technology to their products is a privilege,” Chen added at the time. “Ford’s expanded application of our software and services illustrates the diverse and broad value we can bring to market.”

Ford recently received $154 million from Canadian governments to support several hundred jobs at an engine plant in Ontario as Prime Minister Justin Trudeau campaigns to keep auto jobs inside the country.

“Growing our expertise, experience and use of the BlackBerry QNX embedded software platforms will help ensure we deliver the high-quality, highly secure experience that our customers expect,”  Raj Nair, Chief Technical Officer at Ford Motor Company, said of his company’s partnership with BlackBerry.

How Autonomous Driving Could Save Countries Hundreds of Billions of Dollars