The automotive industry is an important part of the global economy, producing vehicles that transport people and goods efficiently within nations and across entire regions. These businesses produce automobiles, trucks, vans, and sport utility vehicles (SUVs). Some companies even manufacture motorcycles, all-terrain vehicles, and commercial vehicles such as transport trucks and buses.

5. MERCEDES BENZ 

Mercedes-Benz, also known as Mercedes and Benz, is a German luxury and commercial vehicle automotive brand founded in 1926. Mercedes-Benz AG is a Mercedes-Benz Group subsidiary headquartered in Stuttgart, Baden-Württemberg, Germany. Mercedes-Benz AG manufactures consumer luxury vehicles as well as commercial vehicles under the Mercedes-Benz brand. Mercedes-Benz-badged heavy commercial vehicles (trucks and buses) are managed by Daimler Truck, a former subsidiary of the Mercedes-Benz Group that will become an independent company in late 2021. Mercedes-Benz was the world's largest premium vehicle brand in 2018, selling 2.31 million passenger cars.

  Mercedes-Benz can be traced back to Karl Benz's invention of the first internal combustion engine in a car, as seen in the Benz Patent Motorwagen - financed by Bertha Benz's dowry[10] and patented in January 1886[11] - and Gottlieb Daimler and their engineer Wilhelm Maybach's conversion of a stagecoach, with the addition of a petrol engine, introduced later that year. Daimler Motoren Gesellschaft introduced the Mercedes automobile in 1901. (DMG).

Emil Jellinek, a DMG-affiliated European automobile entrepreneur, registered the trademark in 1902, naming the 1901 Mercedes 35 hp after his daughter Mercedes Jellinek. Jell inek was a businessman and marketing strategist who promoted "horseless" Daimler automobiles among the highest social circles in his adopted country. It was a gathering place at the time.

MARKET CAP: $80.84 B


4. PORSCHE


Dr. Ing. h.c. F. Porsche AG, abbreviated Porsche is a German automobile manufacturer based in Stuttgart, Baden-Württemberg, Germany, that specializes in high-performance sports cars, SUVs, and sedans. Volkswagen AG owns the company, with Porsche Automobil Holding SE owning a controlling stake. The current Porsche lineup consists of the 718 Boxster/Cayman, 911 (992), Panamera, Macan, Cayenne, and Taycan.

Ferdinand Porsche[a] (September 3, 1875 – January 30, 1951) was an Austro-Bohemian automotive engineer and the founder of Porsche AG. He is best known for developing the Volkswagen Beetle, the Auto Union racing car, the Mercedes-Benz SS/SSK, and several other significant developments and Porsche automobiles.
Porsche was an important contributor to the German war effort during WWII,[1] working on advanced tanks such as the VK 4501 (P), the Elefant (originally called "Ferdinand") self-propelled gun, and the Panzer VIII Maus super-heavy tank, as well as other weapon systems such as the V-1 flying bomb.
 Porsche was a Nazi Party member and a member of the Schutzstaffel (SS).
He received the German National Prize.

MARKET CAP: $105.56B 

3. BYD

BYD is a high-tech company dedicated to technological advancements that enhance people's lives. BYD was founded in February 1995, and after more than 20 years of rapid growth, the company has established over 30 industrial parks around the world and played an important role in industries such as electronics, automobiles, new energy, and rail transit. BYD is committed to providing zero-emission energy solutions, from energy generation and storage to applications. BYD is listed on the Hong Kong and Shenzhen Stock Exchanges, with a market capitalization and revenue both exceeding RMB 100 billion.


Wang Chuanfu (born 1966) is a Chinese chemist and billionaire entrepreneur who founded, chairs, and runs BYD Company. He worked as a government researcher for several years before entering the private sector and establishing his own company, BYD Company, outside of Shenzhen in 1995. BYD Company, which he founded with his cousin Lu Xiangyang when he was 29 years old, is now the world's largest manufacturer of mobile phone batteries. [3] He was reportedly worth US$3.4 billion in early 2009, ranking 408th on Hurun Report's Global Rich List 2014. His net worth increased to $5.1 billion in late 2009, and he was named China's richest man by the Hurun Report. This was largely due to a fivefold increase in his company's value following Berkshire Hathaway's purchase of 225 million new BYD shares in 2008.
Wang's fortune increased to $23.5 billion in November 2021, according to Forbes.

MARKET CAP:$114.97 B

2. TOYOTA

Toyota Motor Corporation, or simply Toyota, is a Japanese multinational automaker headquartered in Toyota City, Aichi, Japan. It was founded by Kiichiro Toyoda and incorporated on August 28, 1937. Toyota is one of the world's largest automakers, producing approximately 10 million vehicles per year.
The company began as a spinoff of Toyota Industries, a machine manufacturer founded by Kiichiro's father, Sakichi Toyoda. Both companies are now part of the Toyota Group, one of the world's largest conglomerates. While still a division of Toyota Industries, the company produced its first product, the Type A engine, in 1934, and its first passenger car, the Toyota AA, in 1936.

Toyoda Kiichir (June 11, 1894 – March 27, 1952) was a Japanese businessman and the son of Sakichi Toyoda, the founder of Toyoda Loom Works. His decision to shift Toyoda's focus from automatic loom manufacturing to automobile manufacturing birthed Toyota Motor Corporation.
Kiichiro Toyoda persuaded his brother, who was responsible as the family business's head at the time, to invest in the expansion of Toyoda Loom Works into a concept automobiles division, which was deemed a risk to the family business at the time. Shortly before his death, Sakichi Toyoda encouraged his son to follow his dream and pursue automobile manufacturing  Kiichiro would solidify the family's mechanical prowess in inventing steam, oil, and electric looms, and would develop and institute what would eventually become the Toyota Motor Corporation. He would also change the spelling of the automobile company away from the family name to ensure good fortune.
Toyoda would never know the success that would come his way because he resigned from the company he founded in 1950 due to declining sales and profitability. He died two years later and was dubbed "Japan's Thomas Edison" by his contemporaries. [1] In 1957, he was succeeded as CEO of Toyota Motor Corporation by his cousin and confidant Eiji Toyoda, who would build on the late Toyoda's successful expansion into a world-class conglomeration of engineering and the launch of Japan's most prominent luxury brand, Lexus.
MARKET CAP: $200.05 B

1. TESLA

Tesla, Inc. is a multinational American automotive, artificial intelligence, and clean energy corporation headquartered in Austin, Texas. Tesla creates electric vehicles (electric cars and trucks), battery energy storage from home to grid-scale, solar panels and solar roof tiles, and related products and services. With 3.99 gigawatt-hours (GWh) installed in 2021, Tesla Energy is also one of the largest global suppliers of battery energy storage systems.
Tesla Motors was founded in July 2003 by Martin Eberhard and Marc Tarpenning. The name of the company is a nod to inventor and electrical engineer Nikola Tesla. Elon Musk became the company's largest shareholder in February 2004, after investing $6.5 million. He has been CEO since 2008. According to Musk, Tesla's mission is to accelerate the transition to sustainable transportation and energy via electric vehicles and solar power. In 2009, Tesla began production of its first car model, the Roadster sports car. The Model S sedan debuted in 2012, followed by the Model X SUV in 2015, the Model 3 sedan in 2017, the Model Y crossover in 2020. The Cybertruck light-duty pickup truck will go into production in 2023, according to the company.
 

Elon Reeve Musk FRS, born June 28, 1971, is an entrepreneur and investor. He is the founder, CEO, and chief engineer of SpaceX, as well as the angel investor, CEO, and product architect of Tesla, Inc., the owner and CEO of Twitter, Inc., the founder of The Boring Company, the co-founder of Neuralink and OpenAI, and the president of the philanthropic Musk Foundation. Musk is the world's second-wealthiest person, according to both the Bloomberg Billionaires Index and Forbes' real-time billionaires list, with an estimated net worth of around $139 billion as of December 23, 2022, primarily from his ownership stakes in Tesla and SpaceX.Musk was born in Pretoria, South Africa, and attended the University of Pretoria for a short time before moving to Canada at the age of 18, gaining citizenship through his Canadian-born mother. He enrolled at Queen's University two years later and transferred to the University of Pennsylvania, where he earned bachelor's degrees in economics and physics. In 1995, he relocated to California to attend Stanford University. He dropped out after two days and co-founded the online city guide software company Zip2 with his brother Kimbal. Zip2 was purchased by Compaq for $307 million in 1999, and Musk co-founded X.com, a direct bank. In 2000, X.com merged with Confinity to form PayPal, which eBay purchased for $1.5 billion in 2002.

MARKET CAP:$595.70 B