Alexander Hitzinger has joined the brand board of management for technical development at Volkswagen Commercial Vehicles, with immediate effect.
In addition to his board responsibilities, Hitzinger will take charge of the Volkswagen Group’s Centre for Autonomous Driving and its MaaS (mobility as a service) activities. He joins the German auto maker from technology giant Apple, where he was senior director of hardware engineering. The acting head of technical development, Axel Anders, will take on new responsibilities within the group.
Hitzinger is a graduate engineer with an MBA who began his career in 1997 as a development engineer with Toyota Motorsport in Germany. He has also led the Formula 1 Development department at British engine manufacturer Cosworth and has been head of advanced technologies at Red Bull Technology (UK). From 2011 to 2016 Hitzinger worked at Porsche as technical director LMP1 for the Le Mans World Endurance Championship, where he was responsible for the development of the 919 hybrid long-distance racing car.
Dr Thomas Sedran, chairman of the brand board of management of Volkswagen Commercial Vehicles, said: “In Alexander Hitzinger we have recruited a renowned expert. Within our new brand strategy he will be implementing our model campaign and forcefully promoting the expansion of our competencies in the fields of electric propulsion, software development and autonomous driving.”
