Mercedes-Benz has named Magnus Östberg to the newly created position of Chief Software Officer, responsible for the MB.OS vehicle operating system. The move reflects the automaker’s two key strategic focus areas: vehicle software and electrification.

“With MB.OS, we made a clear strategic decision for the future of Mercedes-Benz: to apply our own software-platform for our vehicles, for which we are now creating a specific software position to bring together the responsibility for all related development tasks. Magnus Östberg is excellently suited for this job and I am very much looking forward to working with him,” said Ola Källenius, chairman of the Boards of Management of Daimler AG and Mercedes-Benz AG.

Östberg succeeds Sajjad Khan, who, as former Mercedes-Benz Chief Technology Officer, was responsible for development in areas of connectivity, autonomous, shared & services and electric services. Khan left Mercedes-Benz to establish a technology venture-capital fund.

“A native of Sweden, Östberg graduated from Chalmers University of Technology, Gothenburg, with a master’s degree in electrical engineering. His automotive industry career has included positions at software and technical company Mecel, vehicle software, infotainment and telematic firm Delphi in Germany and the U.S. and most recently with automotive supplier Aptiv in the U.S.

.Östberg will report directly to Källenius both to Markus Schäfer, member of the Daimler AG management board for group research and chief operating officer for Mercedes-Benz AG.