Robert Bosch GmbH, commonly known as Bosch (styled BOSCH), is a German multinational engineering and technology company headquartered in Gerlingen, Baden-Württemberg, Germany. The company was founded by Robert Bosch in Stuttgart in 1886.[2] Bosch is 94% owned by the Robert Bosch Stiftung, a charitable institution.[3] Although the charity is funded by owning the vast majority of shares, it has no voting rights and is involved in health and social causes unrelated to Bosch's business.
Bosch's core operating areas are spread across four business sectors: mobility (hardware and software), consumer goods (including household appliances and power tools), industrial technology (including drive and control), and energy and building technology.[4]
Bosch is the largest automotive supplier in the world.[5] From 2025 onwards, it faced economic issues due to a decline in global German auto sales.[6]
History
1886–1920
The company began in Stuttgart-West as the Werkstätte für Feinmechanik und Elektrotechnik (Workshop for Precision Mechanics and Electrical Engineering) on 15 November 1886.[7] From 1897, Bosch started installing magneto ignition devices into automobiles and became a supplier of an ignition system. In 1902, the chief engineer at Bosch, Gottlob Honold, unveiled the high-voltage magneto ignition system with a spark plug.[8]
In 1901, Bosch opened its first factory in Stuttgart.[9] In 1906, the company produced its 100,000th magneto. In the same year, Bosch introduced the eight-hour day for workers. In 1910, the Feuerbach plant was founded near Stuttgart, where Bosch began producing generators and headlights (Bosch-Light) in 1914. The motorization of road traffic led to the company's rapid growth after 1900. Bosch had a workforce of 45 in 1901, which grew to more than 1,000 by 1908.[10]
Business divisions
Mobility
The mobility division is the largest, in terms of revenue. The Bosch 2024 global annual report, showed that this division accounted for 61% of global revenues of €90.3billion.[56] This division creates solutions for vehicles and fleet management, developing software, vehicle electronics, logistics management solutions, driver assistance and safety systems and vehicle energy systems such as thermal performance.[57] The mobility division is active in powertrain systems, but has evolved to include hydrogen storage, electric propulsion, automated driving and connectivity.[58]
Since 2022, this division is going through a comprehensive transformation process due to rapid technological advancements that are affecting the sector.[59] Bosch Mobility is developing advanced driver assistance system software, cameras and sensors that they are overlaying with artificial intelligence.[60]
Locations
Through a complex network of over 468 subsidiaries and regional entities, the company operates in over 60 countries worldwide. Including sales and service partners, Bosch's global manufacturing, engineering, and sales network covers nearly every country in the world. At 125 locations across the globe, Bosch employs roughly 90,100 associates in research and development.
Britain
In the UK, Bosch has its corporate head office in Denham, Buckinghamshire, and employs circa. 6,300 people. There are 30 Bosch Group locations throughout the country, including 10 manufacturing sites.[80] Alongside sales and support functions for all Bosch business sectors in the region, the company also manufactures boiler systems, mobile hydraulics, as well as packaging machinery alongside lawn and garden products in the UK.[81] In March 2019, Bosch opened its London Connectory, a Shoreditch-based "co-innovation space" open to partners from the public, private, and academic sectors, from start-ups to multinational organizations.[82]
Americas
Previous joint ventures
BSH Hausgeräte
BSH Hausgeräte GmbH, in which Bosch acquired all shares in 2014[91], is one of the world's top three companies in the household appliances industry. In Germany and Western Europe, BSH is the market leader. It includes the principal brand names Bosch and Siemens, Gaggenau, Balay, Neff, Thermador, Constructa, Viva and Ufesa brands, and further six regional brands. Bosch household appliances for the North American market are mainly manufactured at its factory near New Bern, North Carolina.
EM-motive
Daimler AG and Bosch established a 50:50 joint venture (JV) to develop and manufacture electric motors in 2011. The JV, called EM-motive GmbH, manufactures traction motors for electric, fuel cell and extended-range vehicles at a facility in Hildesheim, Germany.[92] In 2019, Bosch acquired the remaining shares and assumed full control of the company.[93]
Current joint ventures
Static ADAS Calibration
In October 2020, Bosch and Mitchell International paired up to develop the MD-500, a wireless tablet that repair planners can use to link directly to OEM repair procedures from Diagnostic Trouble Codes (DTCs), automatically upload pre-scan and post-scans, and write estimates and calibration reports. Bosch and Mitchell launched the MD-TS21, a target system that permits repair facilities to quickly and accurately calibrate blind-spot monitors, front-facing camera, and radar sensors in automobile models with ADAS, in February 2021.[96][97][98]
Corporate affairs
Robert Bosch GmbH is 94% owned by the Robert Bosch Stiftung, a charitable foundation. While most of the profits are invested into the corporation to build for the future and sustain growth, nearly all of the profits distributed to shareholders are devoted to humanitarian causes.
The Robert Bosch Stiftung (Robert Bosch Foundation) owns 94% of the shares of Robert Bosch GmbH, but no voting rights. The Robert Bosch Industrietreuhand KG (Robert Bosch Industrial Trust KG), with old members of the company management, agents of the Bosch family, and other eminent people from the industry (such as Jürgen Hambrecht, CEO of BASF), have 93% of the votes, but no shares (0.01%). The remaining 5% of shares and 7% of voting rights are held by the descendants of the company founder Robert Bosch.[99] Bosch invests 9% of its revenue on research and development, nearly double the industry average of 4.7%.[100]
Finances
Controversies
Role in emission cheating software
In 2006, Volkswagen asked Bosch for help in developing software for their emission defeat devices. Volkswagen is one of Bosch's biggest customers. Volkswagen engineers provided specifications to Bosch, who wrote the code. Bosch was concerned about the legality of the software and asked Volkswagen to assume responsibility if the fraud was discovered, but Volkswagen refused.[116] Starting in 2008, Bosch supplied 17 million motor control and mixture control devices containing illegal software to various manufacturers, domestically and globally. The automobiles fitted with Bosch's devices emitted more nitrogen oxides than allowed under regulations.[117][118]
On 1 February 2017, Bosch agreed to pay US consumers US$327.5million as compensation for its role in devising the software.[119]
See also
Literature
- Johannes Bähr, Paul Erker: Bosch – Geschichte eines Weltunternehmens. (Bosch – the story of a global company). C.H. Beck Verlag, Munich 2013 in German
External links
References
- Annual Report 2024 Robert Bosch GmbH, 2025, retrieved 23 December 2025^
- Bosch GmbH Encyclopædia Britannica, 23 December 2025, retrieved 23 December 2025^
- Company overview Bosch, 31 December 2024, retrieved 23 December 2025^