Ford rehired 350 engineers after AI systems failed to maintain quality. The decision is attributed to lead in JD Power's ranking for the first time in 16 years.

"Mistakenly we thought that by just introducing artificial intelligence ... that would produce a high-quality product.”

The automaker tried the technology for automated quality control, but it was unable to detect enough problems.

Ford Motor Co. is re-emphasizing human expertise to combat persistent quality issues, bringing in hundreds of veteran engineers to train its AI systems. This strategic shift,…