The 2023 World Car Person of the Year award has been presented to SangYup Lee, executive vice president and head of Hyundai and Genesis Global Design Center. The Korean stalwart was nominated to the top honour by a group of 100 automotive journalists from 32 countries for the World Car Awards, of which Hormazd Sorabjee, Editor, Autocar India, and Renuka Kirpalani, Executive Editor, The Autocar Show, are also a part.

1. SangYup Lee won for introducing innovative concept, production cars in 2022
2. BYD president Wang Chuanfu also part of the finalists
3. Top 3 World Car Award finalists to be announced on March 7

SangYup Lee introduced many unique models in 2022

As per the jury, Lee was chosen on the basis that he is the creative mind behind some of the most stunning and innovative concepts and production cars unveiled in 2022. This includes the likes of the Hyundai Ioniq 6, the all-new Kona and the N Vision 74 concept.

Lee’s strong design philosophy, vision and leadership have been instrumental in shaping Hyundai’s new design language, as demonstrated by the brand’s recent successes. 

On receiving the award, Lee commented, “This honour is not the recognition of an individual but a testament to a shared collective passion for creativity encouraged by the dedication of Hyundai top management who set us high standards to achieve. It is the unwavering diligence of the many talented people who contribute to making Hyundai Design what it is today.”

World Car Person of the Year: finalists and previous winners

Introduced back in 2018, the prestigious title is awarded to a key figure from the automotive world, who has made significant contributions during the year. In addition to SangYup Lee, the other nominees from this year included – Wang Chuanfu, chairman and president of BYD Company; Dr Stella Clarke, research engineer, Open Innovations, BMW Group; Peter Rawlinson, CEO and CTO, Lucid Motors; and Naoyuki Sakamoto, chief engineer, GR Corolla, GAZOO Racing Company, Toyota Motor Corporation.

This is the second year in a row that a Hyundai executive has won the World Car Person of the Year. In 2022, Luc Donckerwolke of Hyundai Motor Group was honoured with the title.

In the past, the award has been presented to Toyota Motor Corporation president and CEO Akio Toyoda; Carlos Tavares, CEO of PSA Group; the late Sergio Marchionne, CEO of FCA, and chairman and CEO, Ferrari; and Hakan Samuelsson, president and CEO of Volvo Car Group.

The title is one of the seven awards handed out annually by the World Car Awards (WCA), which was inaugurated in 2003 and launched in January 2004. The top ten finalists for the 2023 World Car of the Year were announced earlier this month. The top three finalists of this category will be announced on March 7. However, the final results will be made public on April 5 at the New York International Auto Show.

What are your thoughts on this year’s World Car of the year finalists? Let us know in the comments below.