The president of car brand Lexus, Koji Sato will take over as Toyota’s Chief Executive of as the former steps down.
In a statement on Thursday, the automaker said Koji will take over as chief executive from April 1.
Akio Toyoda will become the chairman with current one, Takeshi Uchiyamada, dropping the title but will remain on the board.
The question of who would succeed Toyoda, the 66-year-old grandson of the company’s founder, had been a growing concern for investors. However, the announcement of the succession was unexpected.
The automaker has followed a go-slow approach to electric vehicles, arguing that the hybrid technology it pioneered with the Prius will remain important along with investments in hydrogen.
Toyoda said Sato’s mission would be to transform Toyota into a “mobility company,” without specifying what that strategy would entail.
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Sato said Toyoda had offered him the CEO job at the end of the year when both were in Thailand for an event to celebrate Toyota’s 60th anniversary of operations there. “Can you be the CEO?” Sato said Toyoda asked him.
“I didn’t know how to respond,” Sato said. “I thought it was a joke.”
The succession announcement was broadcast on a webcast through the automaker’s Toyota Times channel in a way that looked more like a talk show with a host than a formal corporate announcement.
Sato began working at Toyota in 1992 and progressed through various positions to become the chief engineer of Lexus International in 2016, according to Toyota’s website.
His other roles include the president of Lexus International and Gazoo Racing Company since 2020, and an executive at Toyota as its chief branding officer in January 2021.