In the automotive industry, the term Big Three is used for a country's three largest motor vehicle manufacturers, especially indicating companies that sell under multiple brand names. The term originated in the United States, where General Motors was the first to form a large, multi-brand, motor-vehicle corporation (in the 1910s), followed by Ford Motor Company, and the Chrysler Corporation, all before World War II. The term "Big Three" has since been sometimes used to refer to the following automakers: