Akio Toyoda Steps Down As Toyota CEO, Becomes Chairman Of The Board

Toyota is tweaking its executive structure and board of directors. Most notably, Akio Toyoda will no longer be the automaker's chief executive officer, but he will become the chairman of the board.

Toyoda has been Toyota's president and CEO for the last 13 years. Koji Sato will be the automaker's new CEO. He's currently the automaker's chief branding officer, the international president of Lexus, the boss of Gazoo Racing.

"I am a carmaker, through and through. I believe that’s how I have successfully transformed Toyota. However, a carmaker is all that I am. And I see that as my own limit. The new team under upcoming President Sato has a mission to transform Toyota into a mobility company," Toyoda said about the change in leadership.

Technically, these changes don't take effect until the shareholders' meeting on April 1, 2023.

Toyota recently announced that it hopes to build 10.6 million vehicles in 2023. Although, suppliers informed the company that they expected to have parts for a volume 10 percent lower than the ideal output.

 Toyota intends to be carbon neutral in Europe by 2040. That includes a 100 percent reduction in CO2 by 2035. The steps to make this possible are already underway. For example, the Deeside plant in the UK is already recycling 90 percent of its waste to generate green energy. 

Like many automakers, Toyota is working on the transition to EVs. However, Jack Hollis, the executive VP for sales in North America, believes the 2030 electric vehicle adoption goals might be difficult to achieve because of consumer demand for these models.

In the near future, Toyota is preparing to launch the three-row Grand Highlander on February 8, 2023. The company's teasers call it "the ultimate road-trip vehicle." The model is supposed to slot between the standard Highlander and the larger Sequoia SUV. Later, there might be a Lexus variant that would allegedly go by the name TX.