- Smart (derived from the name of project Swatch Mercedes Art car) is a German automobile brand created in 1994 under the leadership of the Swiss watchmaking group Swatch in collaboration with German manufacturer Mercedes-Benz. Founded in Switzerland in 1994 under the name of Micro Compact Car AG (MCC), from 2002 to 2006 the company, specialized in the manufacture of citadines micro-voitures two-seater, operates under the name smart GmbH, then is fully resumed and incorporated in the German group Daimler AG’s Mercedes-Benz division.