Chinese auto glass giant Fuyao Glass Industry Group Co., Ltd. announced late Wednesday that founder and longtime chairman Cao Dewang has stepped down from his post as part of a “strategic optimization of corporate governance and sustainable development.”

According to the company’s filing, Cao Dewang will remain on the board and continue to serve as a director, chairman, or legal representative in several of Fuyao’s subsidiaries. The board has elected his son, Cao Hui, as the new chairman, legal representative, and head of the board’s Strategic Development Committee.

Cao Dewang, 78, has been appointed Honorary Lifetime Chairman, a title reflecting his decades-long leadership of the company he founded in 1987. Fuyao emphasized that the leadership transition will not negatively affect the company’s daily operations or business stability.

The move marks a significant step in Fuyao’s generational succession plan. Under Cao Dewang’s stewardship, the company grew from a small regional manufacturer into one of the world’s largest automotive glass suppliers, serving global automakers such as Volkswagen, General Motors, and Tesla.

Cao Hui, who has held senior management roles within Fuyao for years, has been instrumental in driving the group’s digital transformation and overseas expansion, including the establishment of Fuyao’s U.S. plant in Ohio — a milestone later chronicled in the Oscar-winning documentary American Factory.