The World Car Person of the Year is an award that annually recognizes a global automotive executive who has made a significant contribution to the industry during the previous calendar year.
For 2025, a jury composed of 96 journalists from all over the world voted for Stella Li, Executive Vice President of BYD. The “Lady of Electric Cars” is guiding one of the largest companies in the global automotive sector.
An important victory
This marks the first time the coveted award was presented to a woman, and to a Chinese company. According to the association’s press release, Stella Li has proven to be a key figure in BYD’s international growth in 2024. She organized a series of very important global model debuts and oversaw the brand’s entry into new markets, all of which were significant factors in surpassing the milestone of producing 10 million electric or hybrid vehicles.
Li was chosen over finalists Ralph Gilles, the head of design for Stellantis, and Simon Humphries, Toyota’s chief branding officer and head of global design.
Last year, our colleagues at Motor1 sat down with Li for an exclusive interview where she discussed a plethora of plans for the future.
The 2024 World Car of the Year award will be presented on April 16 at the New York International Auto Show.
Let’s remember who won the past editions of the World Car Person of the Year award:
- 2024 Adrian Newey, chief technical officer of Red Bull Racing
- 2023 SangYup Lee, executive vice president and head of Hyundai Global Design Center and Genesis, Hyundai Motor Company
- 2022 Luc Donckerwolke, executive vice president of design and chief creative officer, Hyundai Motor Group
- 2021 Akio Toyoda, president and CEO of Toyota Motor Corporation
- 2020 Carlos Tavares, CEO of PSA Group
- 2019 Sergio Marchionne, CEO of FCA, chairman of CNH Industrial, and chairman/CEO of Ferrari
- 2018 Håkan Samuelsson, president and CEO of Volvo Car Group (inaugural winner)
