In 1945, the car manufacturer Auto Union first arrived in the city. The company's original factories in Chemnitz and Zwickau (both then in Soviet controlled East Germany) were shattered during the war, and were seized by the Russians as reparations. Auto Union executives initially started a spare parts operation in Ingolstadt in the immediate post war period, with a view to relocating the entire company to the region. With the help of Marshall Plan aid, Auto Union was formally re-founded in Ingolstadt in 1949, ultimately evolving into the modern-era Audi company, after it was taken over by Volkswagen in 1964. Today, Audi is the region's largest employer and now dominates the economy of the city.