PFAFFIKON SZ, Switzerland, Nov 5, 2026 – AutoForm Engineering GmbH, the leading supplier of software solutions for stamping and body-in-white (BiW) assembly processes, announces the appointment of Karsten Newbury as Chief Executive Officer of the AutoForm Group, effective November 2, 2026. Karsten Newbury succeeds Olivier Leteurtre, who has decided to step down after nearly seven years as CEO, following a mutual decision with the Board.
Mr. Newbury brings nearly three decades of leadership experience across the automotive and technology sectors. He has a strong focus on AI and digital innovation, as well as a track record in commercial strategy, customer engagement and go-to-market execution. Most recently, he was president of the digital division at Humanetics, having previously held senior positions at Gerber Technology and Siemens.
Under Mr. Leteurtre’s leadership, AutoForm strengthened its market-leading position, accelerated its commercial strategy, and expanded its product portfolio, notably through the launch of AutoForm Assembly in 2021. Building on this strong momentum, Mr. Newbury will lead the company’s next phase of growth including capitalizing on significant opportunities from artificial intelligence. AutoForm’s proprietary simulation data, deep engineering expertise and established customer relationships provide a strong competitive advantage as AI transforms the automotive software industry. Mr. Newbury’s technology background will be invaluable as the business further digitizes existing physical processes and drives deeper customer adoption of the company’s existing and new solutions.
Willi Westenberger, Managing Director at Carlyle and member of AutoForm’s Board of Directors, said: “Karsten brings an exceptional combination of experience in industrial software, commercial expertise and strong technology foundation to AutoForm. He is well-positioned to build on the company’s strong momentum and lead its next phase of growth, including capitalizing on the significant opportunities presented by artificial intelligence. We are also grateful to Olivier for his leadership and significant contributions to AutoForm over the past seven years. He played an important role in driving the company’s growth and success, and we wish him well in the future.”
Karsten Newbury, the incoming CEO of the AutoForm Group, commented: “AutoForm has built an outstanding reputation for technical excellence, product innovation and strong customer relationships across the global automotive industry. I am excited to build on this success alongside a talented team and take the business forward. With artificial intelligence creating new opportunities in automotive engineering, we have significant potential to accelerate innovation, expand our product offerings and deliver even greater value to our customers.
About AutoForm Engineering GmbH
AutoForm offers software solutions for the die-making and sheet metal forming industries along the entire process chain. With 350 employees dedicated to this field, AutoForm is recognized as the leading provider of software for product manufacturability, tool and material cost calculation, die face design and virtual process optimization. All of the Top 20 automotive OEMs and most of their suppliers have selected AutoForm as their software of choice. Besides its headquarters in Switzerland, AutoForm has offices in Germany, The Netherlands, France, Spain, Italy, USA, Mexico, Brazil, India, China, Japan and Korea. AutoForm is also present through its agents in more than 15 other countries. For more information, visit www.autoform.com.
