Ford CEO slams Tesla Cybertruck as 'truck for Silicon Valley people' says F-150 Lightning is for 'people who do real work'

Mere weeks after going live on Twitter with Tesla CEO, Elon Musk, to announce that Ford would switch to Tesla's NACS charging hardware, Ford CEO, Jim Farley, has shot down the viability of Tesla's Cybertruck as competition to Ford's F0150 Lightning. Speaking in an interview with CNBC, Farley said that he didn't see the Cybertruck as a threat to the F-150 Lightning because the two vehicles appeal to different buyers.

The reality is, America loves an underdog — and we are the market leader for EV trucks and vans, and we know those customers better than anyone. And if he wants to design a Cybertruck for Silicon Valley people, fine. It’s like a cool high-end product parked in front of a hotel. But I don’t make trucks like that. I make trucks for real people who do real work, and that’s a different kind of truck. - Jim Farley, CEO, Ford Motor Company, via CNBC

Farley also claims that there was little hesitation when considering the partnership with Tesla that would bring NACS charging hardware to Ford's future EV designs, stating that there was a clear benefit to the consumer. As of April 2023, Ford has delivered an estimated 20,000 F-150 Lightning all-electric pickup trucks to US customers, and the company aims to produce two million electric vehicles per year by 2026.

At the end of the day, Farley's words may have some truth to them. While the Cybertruck certainly has the potential to get some work done, Tesla has gone to great lengths to promote its electric pickup truck based on its controversial, minimalist design rather than its practicality.

Where the interior of the F-150 Lightning is laden with buttons and functional controls, the Cybertruck is barren, with a single central infotainment screen in charge of basically all of the vehicle's functions. Ford also offers a wealth of practical optional extras for its F-150 Lightning, and there's more than a little brand loyalty when it comes to the F-150 — something Tesla sorely lacks according to recent surveys. The electric pickup battle may play out unexpectedly, if Tesla's 1.8 million pre-orders are anything to go by.

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