Mercedes-Benz Group AG
A maker of luxury cars and premium vans, Mercedes-Benz Group builds the Mercedes-Benz brand along with its AMG and Maybach performance and ultra-luxury lines. The company traces back to 1886, when Karl Benz patented the world's first automobile, and to Gottlieb Daimler's rival firm; the two merged in 1926 to form Daimler-Benz. The "Mercedes" name comes from Mercédès Jellinek, the daughter of a racing enthusiast who used her name as his racing pseudonym.