Father of the Prius passes away: Hiroshi Okuda, who turned Toyota into a giant, dies at 93
Okuda served as president and later as chairman of Toyota Motor between 1995 and 2006. In a 45-year career at the company, he was considered the central figure in the development of the Prius — the first hybrid vehicle launched in 1997, which marked a technological breakthrough.
Hiroshi Okuda, who led the Japanese automaker Toyota to become one of the largest and most successful companies in the industry, has passed away at the age of 93. The company's spokesperson, Shino Yamada, confirmed his death but stated that the date and cause of death have not yet been fully determined. Okuda served as president and later as chairman of Toyota Motor between 1995 and 2006. In a 45-year career at the company, he was considered the central figure in the development of the Prius, the first hybrid vehicle launched in 1997, which marked a technological breakthrough in the field of energy efficiency at the time.
The model became a symbol of the automotive industry's shift toward green energy, and Okuda contributed significantly to the reputation Toyota earned in fuel economy — both through hybrid vehicles and successful models like the Camry — during a period when fuel prices were already on an upward trend. Okuda was born in central Japan, where Toyota's headquarters are also located, and graduated in 1955 from the prestigious Hitotsubashi University in Tokyo with a degree in business administration. Unlike what was customary in the leadership of the world's leading automaker, he was not part of the founding Toyoda family — a fact for which he stood out, alongside his direct personality and the sense of humor attributed to him.
During his tenure, Okuda led Toyota's global expansion, not only in sales but also in production, by establishing factories in the United States and Europe. In the past, he often expressed concern about a possible backlash against Toyota's growth, which in practice meant displacing the American "Big Three" — General Motors, Ford, and Chrysler — from their traditional status. He used to emphasize the mutual connection between global industry players under the term "harmony." The economic success of Toyota, alongside other Japanese manufacturers like Honda and Nissan, against the losses suffered by American companies, contributed to a wave of "Japan-bashing" sentiments that began as early as the 1980s. Then, as today, it was argued that the weak yen gave an unfair advantage to Japanese manufacturers.
Okuda served as an advisor to the Toyota board of directors when an American member, Jim Press, was first added to it in 2007, and he was also one of the early supporters of promoting a younger generation of managers in the company.
"A company must change when things are going well. There is no point in trying to change after things start to deteriorate," he told reporters in 2005.
This concept reflects the "Kaizen" principle (continuous improvement) upon which Toyota's manufacturing philosophy is based. Okuda also served as head of major business organizations in Japan, including the Japan Business Federation (Keidanren) and the Japan Automobile Manufacturers Association.
