China · Germany · Fortune Technology
Karin Rådström is steering Daimler Truck in a new direction as the world’s biggest truckmaker runs into a growing challenge
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Karin Rådström is used to being the only woman in the room.
Key facts
- The company aims to double defense-related revenues to €1 billion ($1.17 billion) by 2028 and has plans to invest “mid-three-digit-million euros” in its newly established Daimler Truck Defence brand
- Sales of Chinese electric cars in the Western European market hit a record high this year, accounting for 14.2% of purchases in the first five months of 2026, according to Schmidt Automotive
- Since Rådström became CEO, Daimler Truck’s share price has increased almost 40%, from €33.15 to €46.24, and she has overseen significant growth in the company’s zero- emissions vehicle sales
- The European Commission’s requirement of a 40% reduction in emissions from new heavy-duty vehicles by 2030 also risks handing Chinese manufacturers an opening, according to Daniela Costa, Goldman
Summary
Now, as CEO of Daimler Truck, she heads up the world’s largest manufacturer of commercial vehicles. Since Rådström became CEO, Daimler Truck’s share price has increased almost 40%, from €33.15 to €46.24, and she has overseen significant growth in the company’s zero- emissions vehicle sales, which rose 67% in 2025. Despite only recently becoming an independent business (formed out of the split of Daimler AG into Mercedes-Benz and Daimler Truck in 2021), Daimler Truck has over a century of history. Rådström, a Swede, was surprised by the layers of hierarchy at the German company and the sheer volume of decisions that crossed her desk as CEO. Rådström has called on the company to operate “simpler, faster, and stronger.” This mantra, which encourages quicker decision-making and greater autonomy, has been central to the cultural transformation that she has spearheaded since becoming CEO.