Skip to main content
C
CorpDigest
Search

AB Volvo

Commercial VehiclesFounded 1927
Reviewed by Swet Parvadiya
Company data updated: October 2026

Founders

Who Founded Volvo Group?

Assar Gabrielsson, Gustaf Larson · Founded 1927 · HQ today: Gothenburg, Sweden

Who founded Volvo Group?

Volvo Group was founded by Assar Gabrielsson, Gustaf Larson in 1927. It is now led by Martin Lundstedt.

Founders
Assar Gabrielsson, Gustaf Larson
Founded
1927
Headquarters
Gothenburg, Sweden
Number of founders
2
Current CEO
Martin Lundstedt (since 2015)
Where was Volvo Group founded?
Volvo Group was founded in Gothenburg, Sweden in 1927.
When was Volvo Group founded?
Volvo Group was founded in 1927.
Who started Volvo Group?
Volvo Group was founded by Assar Gabrielsson and Gustaf Larson.
How old is Volvo Group?
Volvo Group is 99 years old as of 2026.

Founding Story

AB Volvo began in 1927 in Gothenburg as a venture backed by bearing maker SKF. Sales manager Assar Gabrielsson and engineer Gustaf Larson set out to build cars suited to Swedish roads and climate, and SKF supplied the Volvo name, Latin for 'I roll', which it had registered in 1915. The first car, the ÖV4, left the factory on April 14, 1927, and the first truck, the LV Series 1, followed in 1928. Trucks, buses and later engines and construction machinery became the lasting core of the business after the car division was sold in 1999.

Assar Gabrielsson

Co-founder 1927

Background

Economist trained at the Stockholm School of Economics who worked in sales at SKF, including its French operations, before starting Volvo.

Role at AB Volvo

Assar Gabrielsson was the commercial founder of Volvo. As a sales manager at SKF he argued that Sweden could build cars suited to its own roads and climate, and he persuaded SKF to fund the project in 1927. He served as Volvo's managing director until 1956, overseeing the move into trucks and buses, the company's 1935 independence from SKF and its listing in Stockholm.

Assar Gabrielsson was born in 1891 in Korsberga.

Assar Thorvald Nathanael Gabrielsson was born on August 13, 1891 and died on May 28, 1962.

Gustaf Larson

Co-founder 1927

Background

Mechanical engineer educated at the Royal Institute of Technology in Stockholm, with earlier experience at SKF and in British engine manufacturing.

Role at AB Volvo

Gustaf Larson was Volvo's technical co-founder. He and Gabrielsson had known each other at SKF, and in 1926-1927 Larson led the engineering of the first Volvo car, the ÖV4, and the early trucks. As technical director he set the company's emphasis on durable, safe vehicles for Nordic conditions.

Gustaf Larson was born in 1887 in Sweden.

Erik Gustaf Larson was born on July 8, 1887 and died on July 4, 1968. He held a master's degree in mechanical engineering from the Royal Institute of Technology in Stockholm.

AB Volvo: CEO & Leadership History

Full timeline →

Martin Lundstedt

President and CEO

2015 – Present

Former Scania CEO who has led the Volvo Group since October 2015, decentralising decision-making to the brands and business areas and directing investment into electric, fuel-cell and autonomous transport. He also sits on the AB Volvo board.

Olof Persson

President and Chief Executive Officer

2011 – 2015

Serving as CEO from 2011 to 2015, he brought absolute financial discipline to the sprawling, highly inefficient conglomerate before being replaced by Martin Lundstedt to drive top-line growth.

Leif Johansson

President and Chief Executive Officer

1997 – 2011

He bought Renault Trucks and Mack in 2001 and Nissan Diesel in 2007. Olof Persson succeeded him in 2011.

Pehr G. Gyllenhammar

Chief Executive Officer, later Executive Chairman

1971 – 1993

He resigned in December 1993 after shareholders opposed his planned merger with Renault.

Keep researching Volvo Group

Who Founded Volvo Group? FAQ

Who are celebrated as the founders of AB Volvo?

Assar Gabrielsson (an economics graduate and sales manager at ball-bearing maker SKF) and Gustaf Larson (a talented Swedish mechanical engineer) co-founded AB Volvo in Gothenburg in 1927.

How did the partnership between Assar Gabrielsson and Gustaf Larson begin?

In August 1924, Gabrielsson and Larson met over crayfish at Sturehof restaurant in Stockholm, agreeing on a napkin pact to develop a Swedish car robust enough to withstand freezing Nordic winters and rough gravel roads.

What was Svenska Kullagerfabriken's (SKF) role in founding Volvo?

SKF provided initial financing, factory space at Hisingen in Gothenburg, and the name "Volvo"—which SKF had registered as a trademark in May 1915 for a planned line of ball bearings (derived from Latin "volvere", meaning "I roll").

What was the first vehicle produced by the founders?

On April 14, 1927, the first production car, an open-top tourer named the Volvo ÖV 4 (popularly nicknamed "Jakob"), drove out through the factory gates on Hisingen in Gothenburg.

Why did the founders quickly pivot to building commercial trucks in 1928?

Open-top passenger cars sold slowly in cold Sweden; recognizing intense industrial demand for freight transport, Larson engineered the LV Series 1 truck in 1928, which instantly became profitable and funded the company's survival.

What core engineering philosophy did Gabrielsson and Larson articulate in 1927?

They famously declared: "Vehicles are driven by people. The guiding principle behind everything we make at Volvo, therefore, is and must remain—safety and durability."

Who was Assar Gabrielsson and what was his executive background?

Assar Gabrielsson (1891–1962) was born in Korsberga, studied economics in Stockholm, and served as SKF's brilliant sales executive, managing Volvo as Managing Director from 1927 until 1956.

Who was Gustaf Larson and what was his engineering background?

Gustaf Larson (1887–1968) was an engineer trained at Chalmers University of Technology and in the UK at White & Poppe, serving as Volvo's Technical Director and Executive Vice President from 1927 to 1952.

When did SKF spin off Volvo to public shareholders?

In 1935, Volvo had grown self-sufficient, and SKF distributed most of its Volvo shares to SKF shareholders, listing AB Volvo independently on the Stockholm Stock Exchange.

What iconic corporate symbol was introduced by the founders?

The iron mark symbol (an ancient chemical sign for iron: a circle with an arrow pointing diagonally up to the right), symbolizing Swedish steel quality, strength, and durability, affixed diagonally across the radiator grille.

How did the founders ensure reliability on severe Swedish gravel roads?

Larson engineered heavy-duty cast-iron engine blocks, oversized leaf springs, and reinforced chassis frames that dramatically outlasted flimsy imported American and European automobiles.

What is the lasting legacy of Assar Gabrielsson and Gustaf Larson?

Their unwavering dedication to human safety, structural integrity, and Swedish engineering excellence established the foundational values that define the global Volvo brand nearly a century later.

Related Founder Profiles

Compare founding stories, origins, and entrepreneurial journeys

Competitor

Daimler Truck

View Founder Profiles
Competitor

Paccar

View Founder Profiles
Competitor

Caterpillar

View Founder Profiles
Competitor

Volvo Cars

View Founder Profiles

Explore Volvo Group

Core profile pages, founders and related research hubs for this company.

Content is for informational purposes only. Not financial advice. Data sourced from SEC filings, annual reports, and public records. See our full disclaimer and methodology.