Mercedes-Benz appoints Jason Hoff to newly created position of North America CEO

• New role: Mercedes-Benz Board of Management creates new North America CEO role to get closer to U.S. customers and the U.S. market
• Strategic Importance: Role to steer strategic direction of Mercedes-Benz in North America

The Board of Management of Mercedes-Benz Group AG (ticker symbol: MBG) is creating a new position of Chief Executive Officer North America to further intensify its engagement with U.S. customers and the economy and to elevate the importance of the United States in its global business plans.

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Jason Hoff, CEO for Mercedes-Benz North America effective May 1st (Photo: Business Wire)

Jason Hoff, currently Head of Quality for Mercedes-Benz Cars & Vans will be appointed to the newly created role of CEO Mercedes-Benz North America, effective May 1^st, 2025. Jason reports directly into the Mercedes-Benz Group AG Board of Management. The North America CEO will be responsible for the overall strategic direction of Mercedes-Benz in the United States.

“The United States has been our successful home for over a century. To unlock our full potential, we are now creating the position North America CEO. This new position will ensure continued growth and increased synergies in the U.S. by bundling our activities and subsidiaries under one roof. We are poised to continue investing in the strong US economy in the coming years and continue to delight Mercedes-Benz customers and fans alike.”

Ola Kaellenius, Chief Executive Officer of Mercedes-Benz Group AG

Mercedes-Benz is bundling its research and development, sales and marketing activities in the U.S. under one roof to underline the importance of the U.S. customer and market, where Mercedes-Benz has been successfully constructing and selling SUVs, passenger cars and vans using the best American and German parts and technologies. Total car and van sales reached 324,500 vehicles in 2024, making it second largest market for Mercedes-Benz.

Jason began his Mercedes-Benz career in 1993 in Stuttgart and shortly thereafter joined the Mercedes-Benz U.S. International (MBUSI) team for the launch of the new M-Class and operations in Tuscaloosa, Alabama. In the U.S., Jason, a native of Oregon, oversaw production of SUVs in Alabama as the plant was continually expanded. He held various senior and executive leadership positions in Quality, Production and Logistics before returning to Germany in 2010 to lead the Interior Purchasing group. In 2013, Jason took on the role of CEO for MBUSI in Tuscaloosa and was responsible for increasing the output of the plant and various key model launches.

For the past five years, Jason has been the Global Head of Quality for Mercedes-Benz Cars and Vans and has played a key role in driving improvements in the area of product and customer satisfaction.

“As an American, I’ve had multiple opportunities to be in key roles in North America and Germany. I’ve been particularly proud to be part of our Alabama’s plant’s expansion into a global hub for manufacturing desirable Mercedes-Benz SUVs, which customers the world over are queueing up to buy. I know what our amazing U.S. team is capable of and am excited to take our performance to the next level.”

Jason Hoff, CEO Mercedes-Benz North America

About Mercedes-Benz in the United States

Mercedes-Benz, with its strong heritage dating back to 1888 in Long Island City, NY, stands as the legacy car brand with the longest representation in the United States. As a major local investor, Mercedes-Benz has committed over USD 10 billion to production, infrastructure, R&D, design, and the dealer network, including USD 7+ billion in our Tuscaloosa, AL, manufacturing site and USD 560+ million in our Charleston, SC, plant. We proudly support more than 163,000 jobs across the country, including 11,100 direct jobs (of which around 8,000 are in manufacturing) and 28,000 dealership employees. Our nationwide presence spans 384 dealer partners and 24 corporate locations in 13 states.

From a manufacturing standpoint, more than 4.5 million vehicles have left the Tuscaloosa plant over the past 28 years, with roughly sixty percent of annual production exported, making Mercedes-Benz US International (MBUSI) one of the largest exporters of automobiles from the U.S. The USA is also the second largest global market for Mercedes-Benz Sprinter vans. Since 2006, Mercedes-Benz Vans, LLC (MBV Charleston) has assembled more than 400,000 vans for delivery across North America.

We are working with around 400 suppliers in the United States and are sourcing our local demand for steel and aluminum almost exclusively in the United States.

The Tuscaloosa operation is the global manufacturing hub for our SUVs (Mercedes-Benz GLE, Mercedes-Benz GLS, the Mercedes-Benz EQS SUV, and the EQS SUV Maybach). Additionally, Mercedes-Benz is making EV infrastructure investments of approximately USD 1.2 billion to expand a high-speed charging network in North America over the next 6-7 years.

In 2024, we sold 324,500 passenger cars and 49,600 vans in the U.S., making the United States the second largest global market for Mercedes-Benz cars and vans.

As a pioneer and relentless innovator, we have filed nearly 100 technology patents in the U.S. and introduced DRIVE PILOT, the first SAE-Level 3 system for conditionally automated driving approved for Nevada and California. Mercedes-Benz is committed to being a good corporate citizen, actively supporting communities with nearly 40,000 hours of company-supported volunteer work in 2024 alone.

Further information about Mercedes-Benz Group is available at:

Mercedes-Benz in North America | Mercedes-Benz Group > Company > Mercedes-Benz in North America

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Forward-looking statements

This document contains forward-looking statements that reflect our current views about future events. The words “anticipate”, “assume”, “believe”, “estimate”, “expect”, “intend”, “may”, “can”, “could”, “plan”, “project”, “should” and similar expressions are used to identify forward-looking statements. These statements are subject to many risks and uncertainties, including an adverse development of global economic conditions, in particular a negative change in market conditions in our most important markets; a deterioration of our refinancing possibilities on the credit and financial markets; events of force majeure including natural disasters, pandemics, acts of terrorism, political unrest, armed conflicts, industrial accidents and their effects on our sales, purchasing, production or financial services activities; changes in currency exchange rates, customs and foreign trade provisions; changes in laws, regulations and government policies (or changes in their interpretation), particularly those relating to vehicle emissions, fuel economy and safety or to the communication regarding sustainability topics (environmental, social or governance topics); price increases for fuel, raw materials or energy; disruption of production due to shortages of materials or energy, labour strikes or supplier insolvencies; a shift in consumer preferences towards smaller, lower-margin vehicles; a limited demand for all-electric vehicles; a possible lack of acceptance of our products or services which limits our ability to achieve prices and adequately utilize our production capacities; a decline in resale prices of used vehicles; the effective implementation of cost-reduction and efficiency-optimization measures; the business outlook for companies in which we hold a significant equity interest; the successful implementation of strategic cooperations and joint ventures; the resolution of pending governmental investigations or of investigations requested by governments and the outcome of pending or threatened future legal proceedings; and other risks and uncertainties, some of which are described under the heading “Risk and Opportunity Report” in the current Annual Report or in the current Interim Report. If any of these risks and uncertainties materialises or if the assumptions underlying any of our forward- looking statements prove to be incorrect, the actual results may be materially different from those we express or imply by such statements. We do not intend or assume any obligation to update these forward-looking statements since they are based solely on the circumstances at the date of publication.

Mercedes-Benz Group at a glance

Mercedes-Benz Group AG is one of the world’s most successful automotive companies. With Mercedes-Benz AG, the Group is one of the leading global suppliers of high-end passenger cars and premium vans. Mercedes-Benz Mobility AG specialises in financial and mobility services. The products range from financing, leasing, vehicle subscription, rental and fleet management to insurance, innovative mobility services, digital payment solutions as well as products and services around charging. The company founders, Gottlieb Daimler and Carl Benz, made history by inventing the automobile in 1886. As a pioneer of automotive engineering, Mercedes-Benz sees shaping the future of mobility in a safe and sustainable way as both a motivation and obligation. The company’s focus therefore remains on innovative and green technologies as well as on safe and superior vehicles that both captivate and inspire.

Mercedes-Benz continues to invest systematically in the development of efficient powertrains and sets the course for an all-electric future. Mercedes-Benz is consistently implementing its strategy to transform itself toward a fully electric and software-driven future. The company’s efforts are also focused on the intelligent connectivity of its vehicles, autonomous driving and new mobility concepts as Mercedes-Benz regards it as its aspiration and obligation to live up to its responsibility to society and the environment. Mercedes-Benz sells its vehicles and services in nearly every country of the world and has production facilities in Europe, North and Latin America, Asia and Africa. In addition to Mercedes-Benz, the world’s most valuable luxury automotive brand (source: Interbrand study, 10. Oct. 2024), Mercedes-AMG, Mercedes-Maybach as well as the brands of Mercedes-Benz Mobility: Mercedes-Benz Bank, Mercedes-Benz Financial Services and Athlon. The company is listed on the Frankfurt and Stuttgart stock exchanges (ticker symbol MBG). In 2024, the Group had a workforce of around 175,000 and sold around 2.4 million vehicles. Group revenues amounted to €145.8 billion and Group EBIT to €13.7 billion.

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