Toyota トヨタ自動車

Toyota traces back to Toyoda Automatic Loom Works, founded by Sakichi Toyoda. In 1933 his son Kiichiro Toyoda set up an automobile department inside the loom company, and it was spun off as Toyota Motor Corporation in 1937. The name was changed from 'Toyoda' to 'Toyota' partly because it required fewer brush strokes to write in Japanese and was considered luckier.

Toyota became known worldwide for the Toyota Production System (TPS) — a manufacturing philosophy built on 'just-in-time' production and 'kaizen' (continuous improvement) that later influenced lean manufacturing practices across many industries. It went on to become the world's largest automaker by vehicle production in most recent years, and launched the Lexus luxury brand in 1989 and the Prius, the first mass-produced hybrid car, in 1997.