No other motoring brand is as intrinsically linked to its founder and designer as BUGATTI is to Ettore Bugatti. Yet, the brand's legend goes far beyond outstanding automotive design and motorsport triumphs. BUGATTI is deeply intertwined with art, culture and lifestyle.  

Ettore Bugatti, the legendary founder of BUGATTI, was the mastermind behind some of the most successful race cars and luxurious vehicles of his era. A pioneer of automotive engineering and motorsport traditions, he remains renowned for his timeless designs.  

With cutting-edge hyper sports cars, some of the world’s most successful racing machines, and approximately 1,000 patents to his name, Ettore Bugatti instilled a relentless quest for perfection through innovation – a philosophy that continues to define BUGATTI to this day. 

Jean Bugatti succeeded his father, Ettore, as the head of BUGATTI, leaving an indelible mark on the legendary brand. Among his most iconic creations was the pioneering TYPE 57S ATLANTIC. Starting in 1935, Jean also led the BUGATTI racing team and personally conducted test drives. While Ettore focused on transitioning the company to railcar production amidst declining automotive orders, Jean took charge of the racing and design divisions, crafting models such as the TYPE 57 and TYPE 59.  

Jean Bugatti’s visionary work in the 1920s and 1930s continues to play an influential role within modern-day BUGATTI. His groundbreaking ideas, often ahead of their time, serve as enduring inspiration for the BUGATTI design team as they shape the brand’s latest creations and future direction.

In Jean’s early BUGATTI designs, his distinctive – now iconic – C-line masterfully enhanced the aesthetic contours of the cars’ side profile. This design element not only added to the visual appeal, but also instilled a sense of fluidity, creating the illusion of motion even when the vehicle is stationary. This elegant attribute remains a signature feature in BUGATTI’s modern cars. Similar principles also apply to Jean’s bold center-line design, which was used to great effect on the TYPE 57SC ATALANTE and ATLANTIC models. This design feature focused on achieving optimal aesthetic proportions, with the accentuated center line exquisitely running down the exterior and tapering to the beltline. Jean’s use of duotone colors and original sculptural forms is consistently referenced in the modern world of BUGATTI design.

When production at BUGATTI ceased in 1952, Romano Artioli vowed, “If no one reacts to the situation at BUGATTI, I will work as long as it takes to one day bring the brand back.” Promise delivered: in 1987, Artioli founded BUGATTI Automobili S.p.A. and became its chairman.  

From the brilliant minds of Nicola Materazzi, Marcello Gandini, Giampaolo Benedini and – of course – Romano Artioli, the EB110 became the greatest and fastest super sports car in the world. It featured the first series-produced carbon chassis, all-wheel drive, four turbochargers, and a 3.5-liter V12 engine with five valves per cylinder producing 560 PS. The EB110 was, quite simply, unlike anything else on the road. When it was first revealed, the design was so forward-thinking that some commentators were initially unsure about its treatment and proportions. However, the EB110 would go on to achieve widespread recognition, both in the design world and throughout the global automotive industry. 

Without Ferdinand Piëch, BUGATTI would not exist in its current form. In 1998, as CEO of Volkswagen AG, Piëch acquired the trademark rights to BUGATTI and soon after purchased the Château and site in Molsheim, Alsace. 

Piëch became increasingly involved with the company, spending months in discussions with the then-owner, Romano Artioli. His vision was to restore BUGATTI to its former glory from the 1920s and 1930s, aiming to reclaim its position as the world's automotive leader. Piëch sought to elevate BUGATTI’s historical values: design, creativity, and exclusivity. This included performance, with a focus on power-to-weight ratio.  

With their fourth design study, Piëch and BUGATTI were nearly where they wanted to be: to bring the elegance of the ATALANTE into the modern age, while optimally refining the model’s technical features. For Piëch, this meant: at least 1000 PS, a top speed of at least 400 km/h, and the ability to drive from the racetrack to the opera without feeling out of place. 

The first production-ready model to meet these extraordinary requirements took several years to develop. BUGATTI was venturing into new technical territory. The first prototype of the new hyper sport BUGATTI was unveiled in the autumn of 1998 at the Paris Motor Show. A year later, at the IAA in Frankfurt, a mid-engined coupé followed. Just six months later, the French luxury brand revealed the 18/4 VEYRON study, named after racing driver Pierre Veyron, who won Le Mans in 1939 behind the wheel of a BUGATTI. The BUGATTI VEYRON marked the dawn of a new era in the automotive world: the hyper sports era.