Ford Motor has announced a surprise deal with Tesla that could put pressure on other automakers’ EV strategies. The deal regarding electric vehicle (EV) charging technology and infrastructure has seen the two rivals come together to give Ford owners access to over 12,000 Tesla Superchargers across the US and Canada from early next year. More crucially, Ford's next generation of EVs will use Tesla’s charging plug, meaning that Ford owners will be able to charge at Tesla Superchargers without an adapter. This will make Ford one of the first automakers to explicitly tie into the network.

The deal was announced during a live audio discussion on Twitter Spaces between Ford CEO Jim Farley and Tesla CEO Elon Musk. On Friday morning, Farley admitted that the deal would pose some challenges for Ford's rivals, saying on CNBC’s “Squawk Box”: “I think GM and others are going to have a big choice to make.” This is because the industry norm for chargers is the CCS charger, while Tesla vehicles and its Supercharger network use what’s known as NACS. Other vehicles can use both but require an adapter. Farley believes that the CCS standard was developed by committee, adding: “Do they want to have fast charging for customers? Or do they want to stick to their standard and have less charging?”

Ford's stock rose by 6.2% on Friday, closing at $12.09 per share, while Tesla's shares also climbed by 4.7%, ending the week at $193.17. However, RBC Capital analyst Tom Narayan said the Ford-Tesla deal could negatively impact GM, Stellantis and other automakers who don't have as many fast chargers, seen as crucial for widespread EV adoption. He added in a note to investors on Friday that “ultimately, we think this should be viewed as Tesla playing the long game.”

Tesla says it has roughly 45,000 Supercharger connectors worldwide at 4,947 Supercharger Stations. The US Department of Energy reports that the country only has around 5,300 CCS fast chargers. General Motors, without addressing Farley’s comments directly, said on Friday that “open charging networks and standards are the best way forward to enable EV adoption across the industry.” GM added that it was working with a group of companies and SAE International, formerly the Society of Automotive Engineers, to develop an open connector standard for CCS, important for “the buildout of an open network of fast charging across North America.”

The issue of public charging of electric vehicles is major given that no automaker other than Tesla has successfully built out its own network. Instead, they have announced partnerships with third-party companies that have often proven unreliable and frustrating to owners. Charging attempts by drivers failed in at least 1 in 5 cases last year, according to a study by J.D. Power. Tesla’s Superchargers were ranked the best for overall customer satisfaction, according to a separate new study from the same firm.

While the deal between Ford and Tesla could put pressure on rival automakers’ EV strategies, David Whiston, an analyst at Morningstar, says that it is not necessarily a cause for panic among legacy automakers like GM. He added: “if you are someone like GM, I don’t think you need to panic.” However, more information about the agreement will be announced closer to Tesla’s chargers opening up to Ford owners early next year.