John Elkann

Early Life

John Philip Jacob Elkann was born in New York City on April 1, 1976. He holds Italian nationality. Elkann spent his childhood in the United Kingdom, Brazil, France, and Italy, which enabled him to become fluent in Italian, English, Spanish, and Portuguese. He studied sciences at the Lycée Victor Duruy in Paris and later earned a degree in engineering from Politecnico di Torino in 2000.

Rise to Success

Elkann's career began with internships at various companies, including Fiat and General Electric. In 1997, he was chosen as the heir to his grandfather, Gianni Agnelli, and joined the board of Fiat S.p.A. at the age of 22. He played a crucial role in the turnaround of the Fiat Group. In 2004, Elkann became vice-chairman of Fiat. He became chairman of the company in 2010. During his time leading the company, Elkann oversaw the acquisition of Chrysler in 2009. He was also instrumental in the 2021 merger of Fiat Chrysler and Peugeot, which resulted in a new entity named Stellantis. In July 2018, he was appointed chairman of Ferrari.

Key Business Strategies

Elkann's strategic focus has been on transforming the Agnelli family business into a diversified holding company. This includes major deals such as Fiat's acquisition of a stake in Chrysler and the merger with Peugeot to create Stellantis. He has also overseen Exor's expansion into media and technology, including investments in the Economist and various tech companies through Exor Ventures and Vento.

Philanthropy

Elkann chairs the Agnelli Foundation, which focuses on education. He has supported initiatives like the Arcipelago Educativo project to combat student dropouts, and has been involved in projects like Torino fa scuola, dedicated to school renovation. He is rumored to donate to Israel.