Continental AG is a German automotive technology company and one of the world’s largest manufacturers of tires. Founded on October 8, 1871, in Hanover, the company began making soft rubber products and carriage tires and spent over a century growing into a global auto supplier through manufacturing expansion, strategic acquisitions, and repeated reinvention. Today it operates across tires, automotive electronics, brake systems, and industrial rubber applications. Continental reported €39.7 billion in consolidated sales in 2024 and employed approximately 200,000 people across 58 countries. It trades on the Frankfurt Stock Exchange (DAX: CON) and is a constituent of the German DAX index.
Key Stats
Continental AG History
Continental’s 150-year history falls into several distinct phases — rubber goods and bicycle tires, automotive tires, electronic safety systems, and now a planned separation into independent tires and automotive businesses. Each transition was driven by the same logic: go where the demand in mobility is heading.
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1871Founded in Hanover Continental-Caoutchouc- und Gutta-Percha Compagnie is established in Hanover, Germany on October 8, manufacturing soft rubber products, rubberized fabrics, and solid tires for horse-drawn carriages and bicycles. The company name is shortened over subsequent decades.
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1892First Pneumatic Tire Continental begins producing pneumatic tires for bicycles, entering the segment that will define the company’s identity for the next century. The technology was still new — John Dunlop had only patented the pneumatic tyre in 1888.
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1898First Automobile Tire Continental produces its first tire designed for motor vehicles, positioning itself at the heart of the emerging automobile industry. Car ownership is still years from becoming common, but Continental commits to the segment early.
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1904Tread Pattern Patented Continental patents the first grooved tire tread, a safety and performance innovation that improves wet-road grip. The design establishes the principle — grooves to channel away water — that still underpins modern tire design.
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1979Uniroyal Acquisition Continental acquires Uniroyal’s European tire business, making it the largest tire manufacturer in Germany and one of the largest in Europe. The deal marks the start of a long consolidation strategy in the global tire market.
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1998ITT Automotive Brake Acquisition Continental acquires the brake and chassis business of ITT Industries, entering automotive electronics and safety systems for the first time. This move beyond tires becomes the foundation for the company’s Electronics & Safety division.
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2004Phoenix AG Acquired Continental acquires Phoenix AG, a German rubber and plastics manufacturer, strengthening its non-tire industrial rubber business. The deal forms part of what becomes the ContiTech division.
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2007Siemens VDO Acquired Continental acquires Siemens VDO Automotive from Siemens AG for €11.4 billion — the largest acquisition in automotive supplier history at that point. The deal transforms Continental into a top-five global auto supplier and adds powertrain electronics, instrumentation clusters, and driver assistance systems.
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2008Schaeffler Becomes Major Shareholder Family-owned Schaeffler AG launches a hostile takeover bid and ultimately acquires a controlling stake in Continental, becoming its largest shareholder. The move was controversial — Schaeffler accumulates debt in the process — but the Schaeffler family retains its major ownership stake to the present day.
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2015Veyance Technologies Acquired Continental acquires Veyance Technologies, a US-based manufacturer of conveyor belts, hoses, and drive belts, for $1.6 billion. Veyance is integrated into ContiTech and becomes that division’s North American regional headquarters.
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2021Vitesco Technologies Spun Off Continental spins off its Powertrain division as Vitesco Technologies, an independent listed company focused on electrification and drivetrain components. The spin-off, approved at the April 2021 AGM, reduces Continental’s consolidated revenue but sharpens the remaining business.
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2024Automotive Spin-off Announced Continental’s Executive Board announces plans to spin off its Automotive group sector as a new independent listed company — later named Aumovio — which produces brake systems, ADAS, and vehicle electronics. The separation, targeting completion in late 2025, leaves Continental focused on its Tires and ContiTech businesses.
Continental AG Co-founders
Hermann Gruson (1821–1895)
An engineer and industrialist from Magdeburg, Gruson was among the original founders of the Continental-Caoutchouc und Gutta-Percha Compagnie in 1871. His industrial background and connections to the Hanover business community were central to securing the founding capital. Continental’s early decades were defined by the collective vision of its founding shareholders rather than a single individual.
Founding Shareholders (1871)
Continental was established as a joint-stock company from the outset, capitalised by a consortium of Hanover-based businessmen and industrialists who pooled resources to manufacture rubber goods for the carriage and bicycle market. No single founder dominated — the company was run by a management board from its earliest days, a structure it maintains today.
Continental AG Acquisitions
Continental has grown largely through acquisition, using deals to enter new product categories, add manufacturing scale, and respond to the shifting demands of the automotive industry. The strategy accelerated from the late 1990s and produced the modern multi-division company.
The early industrial rubber phase was built through the 1979 acquisition of Uniroyal’s European operations, which made Continental Germany’s largest tire maker. A decade later, its acquisition of General Tire in 1987 extended the footprint into North America, giving it production facilities and market access on both sides of the Atlantic for the first time.
The entry into automotive electronics came with the 1998 purchase of ITT Industries’ brake and chassis business, which formed the nucleus of what became the Chassis and Safety division. This was followed by Temic from DaimlerChrysler in 2001, Phoenix AG in 2004, and Motorola’s automotive electronics unit in 2006 — each adding a layer of electronic and sensing capability on top of the core tire business.
The Siemens VDO acquisition in 2007 for €11.4 billion was the defining deal. Siemens VDO brought powertrain electronics, instrument clusters, tachographs, and fuel systems. The price was steep and left Continental stretched, which made it vulnerable to the Schaeffler takeover attempt in 2008. Despite the financial pressure of that period, the VDO integration proved its value over the following decade as automotive electronics became the fastest-growing segment in supplier revenue.
The 2015 acquisition of Veyance Technologies for $1.6 billion was the last major deal before Continental’s strategy shifted from buying toward separating. Veyance — which made industrial belts, hoses, and conveyor systems — strengthened ContiTech’s North American presence and became the division’s regional headquarters in Fairlawn, Ohio.
Since 2019, Continental has moved in the opposite direction. The separation of the Powertrain business as Vitesco Technologies in 2021 and the planned 2025 spin-off of the Automotive electronics division as Aumovio reflect a deliberate de-conglomeration — unwinding decades of acquisition-led diversification to create focused, independently listed businesses.
Continental AG Market Cap
Continental’s market cap peaked at around €40 billion in 2017 on the back of strong automotive demand and electronics growth. The reversal started in 2018 as automotive production slowed and trade tensions mounted, and deepened through COVID and a prolonged downturn in European auto output. As of 2026, with the Automotive spin-off pending and margins recovering in Tires, Continental trades at approximately €14 billion.
Continental AG Competitors
Continental competes across two distinct arenas. In tires, its main rivals are Michelin, Bridgestone, and Goodyear, which together with Continental form the dominant group in the global passenger and commercial tire market. In automotive electronics and safety systems, it competes with Bosch, Robert Bosch GmbH, Aptiv, and ZF Friedrichshafen across braking, ADAS, and chassis technology.
| # | Company | Country | Primary Overlap |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Michelin | France | Tires (Passenger & Commercial) |
| 2 | Bridgestone | Japan | Tires (Passenger & Commercial) |
| 3 | Goodyear | USA | Tires (Passenger & Commercial) |
| 4 | Robert Bosch GmbH | Germany | Braking, ADAS, Powertrain Electronics |
| 5 | ZF Friedrichshafen | Germany | Chassis, Safety, Transmissions |
| 6 | Aptiv | Ireland | Vehicle Electronics & Safety Systems |
| 7 | Pirelli | Italy | Tires (Passenger & Premium) |
| 8 | Hankook Tire | South Korea | Tires (Passenger & Commercial) |
| 9 | Magna International | Canada | Automotive Systems & Components |
| 10 | Yokohama Rubber | Japan | Tires & Industrial Rubber Products |
Continental AG Revenue
Continental reports in euros. Revenue grew steadily through 2019 before the COVID-19 pandemic cut production sharply in 2020. The 2021 dip also reflects the Vitesco Technologies spin-off, which removed powertrain revenues from the consolidated accounts mid-year. Revenue recovered strongly in 2022–2023 but eased again in 2024 as European automotive production continued to weaken.
FAQs
When was Continental AG founded?
Continental AG was founded on October 8, 1871, in Hanover, Germany, as Continental-Caoutchouc- und Gutta-Percha Compagnie. It began by manufacturing rubber products and solid tires for carriages and bicycles before entering automobile tires in 1898.
What is Continental AG’s annual revenue?
Continental reported consolidated sales of €39.7 billion in 2024, down from €41.4 billion in 2023. Revenue peaked at approximately €44.5 billion in 2019 before COVID and structural changes reduced the total.
Who is Continental AG’s largest shareholder?
The Schaeffler family, through their company Schaeffler AG, is Continental’s largest shareholder with approximately 36% of the voting stock. Schaeffler acquired the stake starting in 2008 through a hostile takeover bid that left both companies heavily indebted for several years.
What is Aumovio?
Aumovio is the new name for Continental’s Automotive group sector, which Continental plans to spin off as an independent listed company on the Frankfurt Stock Exchange by the end of 2025. The division produces brake systems, ADAS, and vehicle electronics and generated €19.4 billion in sales in 2024.
Who are Continental AG’s biggest competitors?
In tires, Continental’s main competitors are Michelin, Bridgestone, and Goodyear. In automotive electronics and safety systems, it competes with Robert Bosch GmbH, ZF Friedrichshafen, and Aptiv across braking systems, chassis technology, and driver assistance systems.
