ChatGPT has forced me to gorge on heaping portions of humble pie that’s caused considerable distress to my gastrointestinal system and badly bruised my fragile ego. The software should feature a user advisory warning. Never in a million years did I imagine artificial intelligence could so readily and speedily best my own.
Here’s the story behind my rude awakening.
Cousin Rob paid me a visit this past weekend to help troubleshoot some issues with my new state-of-the-art iMac and to educate me on how ChatGPT could be a great time-saving resource researching and writing this blog. Okay, Cousin Rob had to visit me twice because yours truly is so technologically challenged that it takes multiple efforts to penetrate the part of my noggin that processes technical information. When it comes to patience, Cousin Rob could give biblical Job a good run for his money.
Being the technophobe that I am, I long resisted artificial intelligence and instinctively dismissed all the hype I read about AI this past year. I was particularly skeptical of AI’s writing abilities and was confident that it couldn’t produce copy exuding my passion and creativity.
Reading this story on Monday about Ford being forced to recall 2022-2024 electric Lightning F-150 pickups because of a potentially serious battery issue that has already ignited five vehicle fires got me wondering as to the extent of Ford’s recall issues. Ford for several years running has been the industry leader for safety recalls, and now it’s become a leader of a new genre – the recall-recall, which requires customers to return to their dealers for repairs on recall repairs that weren’t done properly in the first place.
Buyers of Ford vehicles are clearly pie-eyed optimists with even more patience than Cousin Rob and Job combined.
Fortunately for Sam Altman, CEO of OpenAI, I didn’t crash his network with my inquiry about how many recalls Ford has issued so far in 2025, although it did take a good five minutes to retrieve and package the information. Much of the information was too technical, and I was at a loss how I could make it into an interesting and compelling blog.
On a lark, I asked ChatGPT to write a blog in the style of Starkman Approved, replete with my dry wit, or snark, depending on your point of view. Within less than a minute, here’s what it spewed out.
FORD’S NEVER-ENDING RECALL NIGHTMARE: HOW AMERICA’S OLDEST AUTOMAKER KEEPS GETTING IT WRONG
By [Your Name]
Another month, another recall. If you’re a Ford owner, you might as well keep a direct line to your dealership’s service department because, at this rate, you’ll be making more trips there than to your local gas station.
Ford, once the proud symbol of American ingenuity, has now become the poster child for corporate dysfunction. The company, which boasts about its legacy, has spent the last few years putting out more fires than a city fire department—figuratively and literally. Whether it’s faulty batteries, seatbelt failures, or vehicles that decide to stall in the middle of traffic, Ford’s latest recall spree is nothing short of an engineering catastrophe.
Let’s talk numbers. So far in 2025, Ford has recalled hundreds of thousands of vehicles, including the Bronco Sport, Maverick, Explorer, and the electric Mustang Mach-E. The reasons range from “we forgot to bolt the seatbelt properly” to “the battery might explode” to “your engine could just randomly turn off.” If you’re feeling lucky, go ahead and take your Ford on the highway—just hope it doesn’t decide to enter limp mode while you’re merging into traffic at 70 mph.
Ford’s ability to bungle basic safety features is impressive in all the wrong ways. The company’s latest recall of nearly 150,000 Broncos for a suspension issue is particularly concerning. Shock absorbers falling off in the middle of the road? That’s not a minor inconvenience; that’s a lawsuit waiting to happen. And for those keeping track, this isn’t even the first time the Bronco’s been recalled for suspension failures. One has to wonder: Is quality control even a thing in Dearborn anymore?
And then there’s the Mach-E, Ford’s supposed answer to Tesla. Instead, it’s become an overpriced experiment in how many ways an electric car can malfunction. The latest issue? Battery contactors that overheat and cut off power while driving. Translation: Your Mach-E could just decide it’s done working, leaving you stranded in the middle of nowhere. Ford issued a recall for this exact issue back in 2022. The fact that they’re issuing another one in 2025 because they didn’t properly fix it the first time is a whole new level of incompetence.
But perhaps the most mind-boggling issue is Ford’s inability to properly apply software fixes. Multiple recalls have been issued for vehicles that were already recalled before, simply because Ford dealers never actually installed the software updates. Think about that—Ford sent out notices, customers took their cars in, and dealers either didn’t do the fix at all or did it wrong. How does a multibillion-dollar company mess that up?
The real question is, when does this end? Ford executives love to talk about their “commitment to quality” and “customer safety,” but the recall reports say otherwise. When a car company has to issue multiple recalls for the same defect, it’s not just bad luck—it’s negligence.
Meanwhile, competitors like Toyota and Honda continue to dominate the reliability rankings, making Ford’s excuses look even weaker. While Toyota perfects hybrid technology, Ford can’t even get a basic seatbelt installation right. And while Tesla at least innovates through its mistakes, Ford is stuck in a cycle of repeating the same ones.
Maybe it’s time for Ford to take a long, hard look in the mirror. Either they figure out how to build a car that doesn’t need a recall every six months, or they should just start printing a disclaimer on every purchase: “Warning: Vehicle may self-destruct at any time.”
Until then, if you’re a Ford owner, keep your mechanic on speed dial—you’re going to need it.
I confess, ChatGPT’s blog is as good, if not better, than anything I could have produced with the same information. My only quibble is that when Starkman Approved refers to Ford’s Bronco Sport and Maverick pickup, there is an obligatory mention that these vehicles are manufactured in Mexico, where Ford proudly builds its electric Mach-E Mustang.
The “proudly builds” is a dig on Ford’s website lie claiming it’s “All In On America” when the automaker has substantial manufacturing and engineering operations in Mexico, along with more than 12,000 employees in India, where it hopes to manufacture vehicles for export purposes.
Nevertheless, ChatGPT aping Starkman Approved was nearly flawless. I wondered if it was just beginner’s luck and whether it could out finesse Starkman Approved a second time. So, I asked the software to craft a post articulating another recurring theme of this blog: Why Ford CEO Jim Farley should be fired.
Within a minute, here’s what ChatGPT wrote:
Ford CEO Jim Farley’s Driving Ford into a Ditch—Time to Hit the Brakes
Jim Farley talks a good game. He loves to tell the world how Ford is “revolutionizing” the auto industry, promising a future of sleek electric vehicles and cutting-edge technology. But talk is cheap—and Ford’s stock price proves it. Since taking over as CEO in October 2020, Farley’s leadership has been a masterclass in overpromising and underdelivering. Shareholders, customers, and employees deserve better.
Quality Control Crisis
Under Farley’s watch, Ford has led the industry in a category no company wants to dominate: recalls. In 2022, Ford topped the charts with 67 separate recalls affecting over 8.6 million vehicles—more than any other automaker. The infamous Bronco engine failures, F-150 brake issues, and Escape SUV fire risks all point to a company struggling to build cars that people can trust.
Ford’s reputation for “Built Ford Tough” is turning into “Built Ford Broken.”
And let’s not forget Ford’s recent manufacturing blunder—the brand-new Lincoln Nautilus, which has to be built in China because Farley and his team couldn’t figure out how to keep production in North America. Imagine telling loyal Ford customers that their luxury SUV is now made by the same folks building knockoff iPhones.
EV Strategy? More Like an EV Disaster
Farley has bet big on electric vehicles (EVs), but his strategy has been an expensive misfire. Ford’s EV division, Model e, lost $4.7 billion in 2023 alone and is projected to lose another $5.5 billion in 2024. Despite all the hype, Ford is pausing or slashing EV production, including scaling back its much-touted F-150 Lightning and pushing back its next-generation EVs.
Meanwhile, Tesla, Rivian, and even Chinese automakers are outpacing Ford in innovation and efficiency. Ford’s EV rollout has been so botched that even GM—a company not known for being ahead of the curve—looks competent by comparison.
Shareholder Value Destroyed
Farley promised investors that he would turn Ford into a tech powerhouse, but Ford’s stock is still down more than 25% from its 2022 peak. While competitors like Toyota and Tesla have found ways to adapt to changing market conditions, Ford is bleeding cash and failing to inspire confidence on Wall Street.
And let’s not forget Farley’s obsession with Wall Street theater—from bragging about cutting costs to making wild predictions about the EV future that never seem to come true. Investors are tired of his grandstanding. They want real leadership, not empty promises.
Culture of Chaos
Internally, Ford has been a revolving door of executive departures. Talent is leaving, morale is tanking, and engineers are growing frustrated with a company more focused on making headlines than making quality cars.
Instead of leading, Farley has been obsessed with his personal brand, appearing on podcasts, hyping up Ford’s racing division, and acting more like a social media influencer than a CEO.
The bottom line? Jim Farley has had more than three years to prove himself, and the results speak for themselves: Ford is lagging behind in quality, struggling in EVs, and failing shareholders. It’s time for the Board of Directors to face reality.
Jim Farley needs to go.
Ford deserves a leader who actually knows how to run a car company—not just talk about it.
Another near flawless execution of a Starkman Approved post. Admittedly, some of the information ChatGPT scraped isn’t up to date. For example, it says Ford’s electric vehicle division was projected to lose $5.5 billion; Ford has already reported a $5.1 billion loss. ChatGPT noted that Farley took over in October 2020 but said he’s had more than three years to prove himself.
Farley has had more than four years to prove himself.
Still, ChatGPT took all of a minute to produce its copy. It would take me hours to research and produce comparable content.
Oh, and all the caricatures, ChatGPT not only created the illustrations, but came up with the concepts. The caricature of Farley is off, but I suspect I could upload some Farley photos and ChatGPT would make the necessary fixes.
My ChatGPT experience has given me an appreciation of how AI will displace legions of workers in a wide swath of professions including lawyers, physicians, advertising creatives, graphic designers, and journalism.
ChatGPT is sufficiently developed that I’m certain it could already do a reasonably good job drafting and proofing legal documents. I recently underwent a battery of blood tests that One Medical paid a nurse practitioner to analyze. Cousin Rob has a friend that uses ChatGPT to track and analyze his medical records to identify possibly alarming but unnoticed trends.
ChatGPT no doubt could create compelling advertising campaigns, replete with videos and slogans. ChatGPT could allow corporate media reporters to accelerate their output of anti-Trump/Musk stories and come up with more criticisms than likening them to Nazis and warning they’re a threat to democracy.
CEOs, who are salivating about the myriad employees ChatGPT will enable them to lay off, would be wise to fear the technology themselves. Activist shareholders could harness AI to easily identify CEOs who are badly underperforming and outline detailed arguments why they should be removed. Given the plethora of overrated CEOs, I doubt that ChatGPT yet has the server bandwidth to handle the task.
ChatGPT could also create new business opportunities. I’ve long toyed with the idea of starting a website focused on the decline of GM and Ford, highlighting their serious recalls issues, their mounting class action woes, and profiling the litigation attorneys pursuing the flailing automakers. With ChatGPT, I could easily leverage my interest into a possibly lucrative sideline.
As for Starkman Approved, ChatGPT will force me to up my game. Going forward, I will test my posts to make certain they contain information and insights that ChatGPT can’t easily reproduce. The challenge will become increasingly formidable, but I welcome the competition.
That is after I fully digest all the humble pie ChatGPT shoved down my throat.