BorgWarner vs Samsung: Founders, CEOs and History

Company facts

Founders

CEOs and their tenures

Timeline: BorgWarner and Samsung side by side

1. 1928BorgWarner

   Four parts makers merge to form Borg-Warner

   Borg & Beck, Warner Gear, Marvel-Schebler Carburetor and Mechanics Universal Joint agreed to merge in May 1928, creating Borg-Warner Corporation with headquarters on South Michigan Avenue in Chicago. Morse Chain, Long Manufacturing and others joined in 1929.

2. 1934BorgWarner

   Overdrive transmission sold to Chrysler

   Warner Gear engineers developed Borg-Warner's first overdrive, sold to Chrysler in 1934. A year later the company started the automatic-transmission program that paid off after World War II.

3. 1936BorgWarner

   Borg-Warner Trophy introduced

   Borg-Warner commissioned a sterling silver trophy for the Indianapolis 500. It has been presented to the race winner ever since and remains the company's best-known public symbol.

4. 1938Samsung

   Samsung Group begins

   Lee Byung-chul founded Samsung as a trading company before later generations expanded the group into electronics and industry.

5. 1950BorgWarner

   Ford-O-Matic automatic transmission

   After a 1948 contract to build half of Ford's automatic transmissions, Borg-Warner developed the three-speed Ford-O-Matic and its first lock-up torque converter. The Ford-O-Matic contract ended in 1958.

6. 1969Samsung

   Samsung Electronics established

   Samsung Electronics Industry Co. Ltd. was established as the group entered electronics manufacturing.

7. 1977Samsung

   Korea Semiconductor acquired

   Samsung acquired Korea Semiconductor, a key step toward memory and component manufacturing leadership.

8. 1987BorgWarner

   Leveraged buyout and break-up

   A hostile approach from GAF Corporation ended with a $4.2 billion leveraged buyout led by Merrill Lynch Capital Partners. The debt forced the sale of most non-automotive businesses, including chemicals to General Electric for $2.3 billion in 1988.

9. 1993BorgWarner

   Borg-Warner Automotive becomes independent

   Borg-Warner Automotive was spun off from Borg-Warner Security Corporation and became a separate public company focused on powertrain components.

10. 1993Samsung

    New Management initiative

    Lee Kun-hee launched the New Management push to raise quality, design, and global competitiveness.

11. 1998BorgWarner

    Entry into turbochargers

    BorgWarner bought German turbocharger maker Kühnle, Kopp & Kausch, then added Kuhlman Corporation's Schwitzer diesel turbo business in 1999. Turbos became the core of today's largest segment.

12. 2005BorgWarner

    Headquarters moves to metro Detroit; BERU stake

    BorgWarner moved its world headquarters from Chicago to the Detroit area and took a majority stake in BERU AG, a German supplier of diesel cold-start and ignition technology.

13. 2015BorgWarner

    Remy International acquisition

    BorgWarner bought Remy International, a maker of electric motors, starters and alternators, for $29.50 per share in cash, giving it the rotating-electrics base for later e-motor products.

14. 2017Samsung

    Harman acquisition closes

    Samsung completed the Harman acquisition, expanding into connected car systems and premium audio.

15. 2020BorgWarner

    Delphi Technologies acquisition completed

    BorgWarner completed its all-stock purchase of Delphi Technologies on October 2, 2020, after renegotiating the exchange ratio to 0.4307 BorgWarner shares per Delphi share. The deal added power electronics, software and fuel-system businesses.

16. 2021BorgWarner

    Charging Forward strategy and AKASOL

    BorgWarner set a goal of raising electric-vehicle revenue from under 3% of sales to about 45% by 2030 and agreed to buy German battery-system maker AKASOL for EUR 120 per share.

17. 2022Samsung

    Jong-Hee Han becomes CEO

    Jong-Hee Han became CEO of Samsung Electronics Co. in 2022. A longtime TV business leader who helped keep Samsung the top global TV brand.

18. 2023BorgWarner

    PHINIA spin-off

    On July 3, 2023 BorgWarner completed the tax-free spin-off of its Fuel Systems and Aftermarket segments as PHINIA Inc., a separate NYSE-listed company.

19. 2024BorgWarner

    $646 million of impairments

    BorgWarner recorded $646 million of impairment charges, including $577 million of goodwill at PowerDrive Systems and Battery & Charging Systems. Net earnings attributable to the company fell to $338 million.

20. 2024Samsung

    Jun Young-hyun becomes CEO

    Jun Young-hyun became CEO of Samsung Electronics Co. in 2024. Head of the semiconductor (Device Solutions) division and memory business; sole CEO for part of 2025 after Han Jong-hee's death, then co-CEO with TM Roh from November 2025.

21. 2025BorgWarner

    New CEO, charging exit and record awards

    Joseph F. Fadool became CEO on February 6, 2025, and the company decided that month to exit EV charging. Net sales reached $14.316 billion, free cash flow rose about 66% to $1.208 billion, and about $630 million was returned to shareholders.

22. 2025Samsung

    TM Roh joins Young Hyun Jun as co-CEO

    Samsung named TM Roh Head of Device eXperience and CEO, joining Young Hyun Jun as co-CEO.

23. 2025Samsung

    Annual revenue reaches ~$237B (KRW 333.6T)

    Samsung Electronics reported ~$237 billion (KRW 333.6 trillion) in 2025 annual revenue and ~$31 billion (KRW 43.6 trillion) in operating profit.

24. 2025Samsung

    Roh Tae-moon (TM Roh) becomes CEO

    Roh Tae-moon (TM Roh) became CEO of Samsung Electronics Co. in 2025. Longtime head of the mobile business.

25. 2026BorgWarner

    Entry into data center power

    On February 11, 2026 BorgWarner signed a master supply agreement with TurboCell, a subsidiary of Endeavour, for a modular turbine generator system for AI data centers and microgrids, with production expected in early 2027.

Acquisitions

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