BUSINESSPEOPLE from Austria

Top 7

The following people are considered by Pantheon to be the most legendary Austrian Businesspeople of all time. This list of famous Austrian Businesspeople is sorted by HPI (Historical Popularity Index), a metric that aggregates information on a biography’s online popularity.

1. Dietrich Mateschitz (1944 - 2022)

With an HPI of 67.01, Dietrich Mateschitz is the most famous Austrian Businessperson.  His biography has been translated into 40 different languages on wikipedia.

Dietrich Markwart Eberhart Mateschitz (German: [ˈdiːtʁɪç ˈmaːtəʃɪts], Thai: ดีทริช เมเทสซิทซ์; 20 May 1944 – 22 October 2022) was an Austrian billionaire businessman. He was the co-founder and 49% owner of Red Bull GmbH. In April 2022, Mateschitz's net worth was estimated at US$27.4 billion. Mateschitz worked in marketing for Unilever and Blendax. While travelling in Thailand, he discovered the drink Krating Daeng, which he adapted into Red Bull. He founded Red Bull GmbH in 1984 and launched it in Austria in 1987. His company acquired or founded several sports teams around the world, including six-time Constructors' Champions Red Bull Racing and sister team RB in Formula One, and association football teams including FC Red Bull Salzburg and RB Leipzig.

2. Mercédès Jellinek (1889 - 1929)

With an HPI of 63.80, Mercédès Jellinek is the 2nd most famous Austrian Businessperson.  Her biography has been translated into 25 different languages.

Mercédès Adrienne Ramona Manuela Jellinek (16 September 1889 – 23 February 1929) was the daughter of Austrian automobile entrepreneur Emil Jellinek and his first wife Rachel Goggmann Cenrobert. She was born in Vienna. She is best known for her father having Daimler-Motoren-Gesellschaft's line of Mercedes cars named after her, beginning with the Mercedes 35 hp model of 1901. In addition, her father hung a large picture of her at the 1902 Paris Automobile exhibition. He even legally changed his name to Jellinek-Mercedes in 1903 after Daimler-Motoren-Gesellschaft registered Mercedes as a trademark in 1902. Mercedes is a Spanish female name meaning mercies (Spanish: merced f sg, "mercy", mercedes f pl, "mercies").

3. Ferdinand Piëch (1937 - 2019)

With an HPI of 62.04, Ferdinand Piëch is the 3rd most famous Austrian Businessperson.  His biography has been translated into 28 different languages.

Ferdinand Karl Piëch (German pronunciation: [ˈfɛʁdinant ˈpiːɛç] ; 17 April 1937 – 25 August 2019) was an Austrian business magnate, engineer, and executive who held the positions of chairman of the executive board (Vorstandsvorsitzender) of the Volkswagen Group from 1993 to 2002, and chairman of the supervisory board (Aufsichtsratsvorsitzender) from 2002 to 2015. Piëch was pivotal in the advancement of technologies such as the TDI engine and the Quattro all-wheel-drive system, both of which played crucial roles in Volkswagen's success in the automotive industry. His enduring legacy as one of Germany's most respected engineers is underscored by his influence on the development of the MQB platform. A grandson of Ferdinand Porsche, Piëch began his career at Porsche before moving to Audi, following an agreement that no member of the Porsche or Piëch families would be directly involved in Porsche's daily operations. At Audi, Piëch was instrumental in transforming the brand into a formidable competitor to Mercedes-Benz and BMW, thanks to groundbreaking models like the Audi Quattro and the Audi 100. Trained as an engineer, Piëch had a profound impact on the design and engineering of several iconic vehicles, including the Porsche 911, Porsche 917, Audi Quattro, and most notably the Bugatti Veyron, which, as of 2012, held the title of the fastest, most powerful, and most expensive road-legal car ever produced. Due to his significant contributions to the automotive industry, Piëch was named "Car Executive of the Century" in 1999 and was inducted into the Automotive Hall of Fame in 2014. Although Volkswagen's policy required Piëch to retire at the age of 65, he remained on the Supervisory Board and continued to shape the company's strategic direction until his resignation on 25 April 2015. He served during the Volkswagen emissions scandal. Though not personally implicated, it was widely recognized that he "presided over the culture that allowed [the defeat devices] to be installed."

4. Giovanni Battista Caproni (1886 - 1957)

With an HPI of 59.64, Giovanni Battista Caproni is the 4th most famous Austrian Businessperson.  His biography has been translated into 22 different languages.

Giovanni Battista "Gianni" Caproni, 1st Count of Taliedo (July 3, 1886 – October 27, 1957) was an Italian aeronautical engineer, civil engineer, electrical engineer, and aircraft designer who founded the Caproni aircraft-manufacturing company.

5. Ferdinand Anton Ernst Porsche (1909 - 1998)

With an HPI of 58.42, Ferdinand Anton Ernst Porsche is the 5th most famous Austrian Businessperson.  His biography has been translated into 23 different languages.

Ferdinand Anton Ernst Porsche (19 September 1909 – 27 March 1998), mainly known as Ferry Porsche, was an Austrian-German technical automobile designer and automaker-entrepreneur. He operated Porsche AG in Stuttgart, Germany. His father, Ferdinand Porsche Sr. was also a renowned automobile engineer and founder of Volkswagen and Porsche. His nephew, Ferdinand Piëch, was the longtime chairman of Volkswagen Group, and his son, Ferdinand Alexander Porsche, was involved in the design of the 911. Ferry Porsche's life was intimately connected with that of his father, Ferdinand Porsche Sr., who began sharing his knowledge of mechanical engineering already in his childhood. With his father he opened a bureau of automobile design, in Stuttgart in 1931. The Volkswagen Beetle was designed by Ferdinand Porsche Sr. and a team of engineers, including Ferry Porsche. After World War II, while his father remained imprisoned in France being accused of war crimes, Ferry Porsche ran their company. Aided by the postwar Volkswagen enterprise, he created the first cars that were uniquely associated with the company. Despite the political-economical adversities of the postwar years, the company manufactured automobiles and, eventually, became a major sports car manufacturer.

6. Franz Josef Popp (1886 - 1954)

With an HPI of 51.18, Franz Josef Popp is the 6th most famous Austrian Businessperson.  His biography has been translated into 17 different languages.

Franz Josef Popp (14 January 1886 in Vienna – 29 July 1954 in Stuttgart) was one of three men responsible for the founding of BMW AG and the First General Director of BMW AG from 1922 to 1942. A number of different candidates have been put forward as the “founders” of BMW AG. In the absence of Karl Rapp, Gustav Otto, Max Friz or Camillo Castiglioni the company would probably never have been born. However, Franz Josef Popp can lay claim to being the prime force in the development of the mobility company we know today. He was “General Director” of the company from its foundation until he was forced to relinquish his position in 1942.

7. Toto Wolff (b. 1972)

With an HPI of 51.12, Toto Wolff is the 7th most famous Austrian Businessperson.  His biography has been translated into 27 different languages.

Torger Christian "Toto" Wolff (German pronunciation: [volf], born 12 January 1972) is an Austrian billionaire investor, motorsport executive and former racing driver. Since 2013, Wolff has served as team principal, CEO and co-owner of Mercedes in Formula One, winning eight consecutive World Constructors' Championship titles from 2014 to 2021; he also served as director and CEO of Mercedes-EQ in Formula E, winning two Formula E World Teams' Championship titles. Wolff began his motorsport career in the Austrian Formula Ford Championship and the German Formula Ford Series. He won his category in the 1994 24 Hours Nürburgring and later competed in the FIA GT Championship and Italian GT Championship. As an investor, Wolff founded Marchfifteen in 1998 and Marchsixteen Investments in 2004, initially focusing on Internet and technology companies. He specialises in strategic investments in medium-sized industrial and listed companies, which have included Williams F1 and German HWA AG.