PAST FORWARD.
FAST FORWARD.
This anniversary is more than a look back at milestones. It’s a statement of intent.
At Daimler Truck, we have always been at the heart of global transportation. 130 years ago, in 1896, Gottlieb Daimler invented the very first truck and founded a new industry. Ever since, we have continued to shape our industry with this pioneering spirit. To this day, our trucks and buses keep the world moving.
Past forward, with the first truck back in 1896, Gottlieb Daimler laid the foundation for modern transportation and created what would become the global backbone of economy and society. Even the first truck built in Germany’s Stuttgart region was sold to a company in London – an early sign of the international significance of this innovation.
Fast forward, our Mercedes-Benz eActros 600 is decarbonizing long-haul trucking in Europe. 130 years after creating modern transportation, we’re now decarbonizing it – and we’re doing so at the speed of right, in line with our customers and market demand.
Daimler Truck – forward by innovation
One idea. 130 years of shaping the industry.
In 1896, the very first truck set a new industry in motion. Since then, Daimler Truck has been at the heart of global transportation - continuously raising standards through engineering, safety, reliability, and passion and the commitment of teams around the world.
Our heritage is remarkable, our presence is strong - yet what matters most is what we do next: driving the transformation, together with our partners, and “at the speed of right.”
Key Milestones - 130 YEARS OF FORWARD
The future doesn’t invent itself. People do.
At Daimler Truck, innovation has never been a moment in time. It is a continuous journey - carried forward by people who challenge conventions, take responsibility, and shape the future with confidence and purpose.
Today’s Forward Thinkers stand in the tradition of Gottlieb Daimler. They are engineers, developers, designers, leaders, and doers across the globe who look beyond today’s challenges and act with tomorrow in mind. Like him, they are driven by curiosity. Like him, they have the courage to take bold steps. And like him, they turn ideas into impact.
From the first truck to zero-emission, connected and intelligent transport solutions - the mindset remains the same: progress starts with people.
By honoring our Forward Thinkers, we celebrate those who embody what Gottlieb Daimler started: the determination to move society forward, the passion to keep the world moving, and the responsibility to do so in the right way. Because they make the difference.
GOTTLIEB DAIMLER – The first Forward Thinker
Every future begins with someone who dares to think differently.
130 years ago, Gottlieb Daimler did exactly that. With curiosity, courage, and an uncompromising belief in progress, he built the world’s first truck and laid the foundation for an entirely new industry. In doing so, he became not only a pioneer of mobility - but, in spirit, the very first employee of what is today Daimler Truck AG.
Gottlieb Daimler was a Forward Thinker long before the term existed. He didn’t invent to improve the status quo. He invented to redefine what was possible. His work was driven by a mindset that still defines us today: bold ideas turned into real-world solutions.
Born in Schorndorf near Stuttgart, he showed an early fascination with mechanics and engineering. After completing technical training and gaining international experience in France and the United Kingdom, Daimler dedicated his life to the development of engine technology.
Driven by curiosity and a bold vision of the future, he focused on building small, high‑speed internal combustion engines that could power vehicles on land and water. Together with his close collaborator Wilhelm Maybach, Daimler developed groundbreaking innovations, including one of the first motorcycles and the world’s first motorized truck. In 1890, he co‑founded Daimler‑Motoren‑Gesellschaft (DMG), laying the foundation for large‑scale motor vehicle production.
Gottlieb Daimler died in 1900, but his pioneering spirit continues to shape our company and the world of transportation.
History inspires us. The future drives us.
130 years after the first truck, Daimler Truck is just getting started. With the same pioneering spirit that sparked everything in 1896, we will build on our strengths going forward and continue to drive the transformation of transportation – decarbonizing transportation and digitalizing our vehicles and services, together with our partners, and at the speed of right.
130 years of experience, one ambition: building the best truck and bus company in the world – for our customers, employees, and shareholders.
