Byton Co-Founder Breitfeld Jumps Ship to Head Rival Iconiq Motors
Zhang Yushuo
DATE:  Apr 17 2019
/ SOURCE:  yicai
Byton Co-Founder Breitfeld Jumps Ship to Head Rival Iconiq Motors Byton Co-Founder Breitfeld Jumps Ship to Head Rival Iconiq Motors

(Yicai Global) April 17 -- Carsten Breitfeld, the co-founder and former chief executive officer of Future Mobility, the Chinese firm behind electric car brand Byton, has joined new energy vehicle startup Iconiq Motors as CEO.

Breitfeld was seen at Iconiq's booth at the Auto Shanghai 2019 yesterday, and Future Mobility confirmed his departure. His resignation was reported by German business periodical Manager Magazin on April 12. Fellow Byton co-founder, Daniel Kirchert, took over the CEO role in January, the Hong Kong-headquartered firm said.  

Prior to Future Mobility, Kirchert worked for BMW Brilliance Automotive as senior vice president of sales and marketing after which he became managing director of Infiniti, a luxury vehicle division of Japan's Nissan Motor. Breitfeld's LinkedIn page shows that until 2015 he headed BMW's hybrid sports car program i8 as vice president of engineering.

Set up in 2014, Future Mobility launched Byton and its first sport utility vehicle two years later. The firm signed a contract with Nanjing Economic and Technological Development Zone in 2017 to invest CNY11.6 billion (USD1.7 billion) to build a factory with a production capacity of 300,000 vehicles. The company is reportedly facing financial issues.

Also founded in 2014, Tianjin-based Iconiq Motors has brought its Iconiq Seven, a seven-seat electric SUV, to the Shanghai auto show, which runs through April 25.

Editor: Emmi Laine

Follow Yicai Global on
Keywords:   Byton,Iconiq Motors