Editor's Choice: RIP Okuda-san, and succession plan for Toyota and its founding family

Hiroshi Okuda also advised the Japanese government and represented Japan's business community. (Photo by Hiromasa Matsuura)August 14, 2026 15:43 JST Hello from Tokyo. Hiroshi Okuda, the former Toyota Motor president who spearheaded the auto company's globalization drive, has passed away. Many Nikkei Asia readers probably know that the Toyoda family founded the automaker Toyota. The company started in 1937, and according to the company's website, the family chose "Toyota" instead of "Toyoda" as a corporate brand because it sounded better, and the number of strokes used to write it in Japanese was considered auspicious.Okuda became Toyota's president in 1995, the first leader from outside the Toyoda family in 28 years. He is widely regarded as one of Japan's greatest business executives and