The head of Audi's Munich design studio, Achim Badstuebner, is leaving to join Mercedes-Benz.
Badstuebner will lead exterior design at Mercedes starting Jan. 1, said Gorden Wagener, Daimler's chief designer.
Badstuebner had been working at Audi for 13 years. Before leading the Munich design studio, he was head of Audi exterior design.
He was considered one of the public faces of Audi's design department and was responsible for some of the most successful current Audi designs.
As head of Audi exterior design, Badstuebner led the design of the single-frame Nuvolari grille, which was first used on the 2005 A6 sedan and is now a signature styling element across the Audi lineup. More recently his team has given shape to Audi's new entries in the crossover segment, including the compact Q3, which is scheduled to arrive in the United States at the end of 2014.
An Audi spokesperson declined to comment.
Badstuebner will succeed Robert Lesnik, who will take on broader duties in a promotion. Badstuebner will report to Lesnik.
Wagener said: "It is part of a restructuring that we are working on at the moment."
Wagener recently lured another designer from a VW Group company. Claudia Roeckle, formerly at Porsche, moved to Daimler to become a manager in the creative color and trim department at Mercedes-Benz.
