Autoliv is the Swedish-American company widely identified as the world’s largest automotive safety supplier, making products such as airbags and seatbelts.
Its core business is passive safety: equipment that helps protect occupants when a crash occurs. Along with airbags and seatbelts, Autoliv produces steering wheels, inflators and related restraint components for major vehicle manufacturers. Its systems are installed across a large range of passenger cars and commercial vehicles.
The company has Swedish roots and is headquartered in Stockholm, while Autoliv, Inc. is incorporated in the United States. That combination explains the Swedish-American description. Autoliv became a major global supplier through expansion and the 1997 merger with Morton ASP, a prominent North American and Asian airbag manufacturer.
A common mix-up is treating Autoliv as a car brand or as a vehicle-testing organization. It does not sell cars to consumers and does not award crash-test stars; it supplies safety hardware to automakers. Its products are also different from active systems such as lane-keeping assistance, which help avoid a crash rather than mainly reducing injury during one.