BERLIN: Volkswagen boss Herbert Diess is stepping down as head of the supervisory boards at subsidiaries Seat and Skoda to focus on building up a stronger software-development team, newspaper Handelsblatt reported on Thursday.

At Skoda, he would be succeeded by current technology head Thomas Schmall and at Seat by Murat Aksel, head of procurement on the Volkswagen board, Handelsblatt added.

Volkswagen has been heavily focussed on regaining lost ground in the fast-growing field of software-heavy electric cars, where United States and Chinese manufacturers are seen as having a lead.