Ford is spinning off its highest-tech projects into a subsidiary

Ford is spinning off some of its most interesting work into a wholly owned subsidiary that the company says “will be designed to compete like a startup.” The subsidiary, called Ford Smart Mobility LLC, will be led by current Ford board member Jim Hackett, who is stepping down from the parent company’s board in the process. Hackett will report to Ford CEO Mark Fields.

Ford has spent much of the past year and a half focusing on its so-called smart mobility initiatives that have focused on things like ride sharing, car sharing, and even e-bikes — all things that stray askew of Ford’s main business of selling lots of cars, which helps explain why the new venture is being extricated from the mothership. The subsidiary will also be responsible for connectivity development (think Ford Sync), self-driving research, and customer-facing initiatives like FordPass, announced this January at the Detroit auto show.

Ford Smart Mobility is wading into a competitive and complicated market for next-gen transportation that’s being driven largely by new players in the Valley: Uber is the ride-share leader, for instance, and Google is arguably further than anyone in autonomous driving research. The new company will be co-headquartered in Palo Alto and Detroit — and the press release names Palo Alto first, a subtle hint that Ford is coming to play with the tech giants. It recently opened its Palo Alto research facility, which has already become a center for the automaker’s self-driving work.