The Toyota Motor Corporation has reached a preliminary agreement with Waymo for the exploration of future collaborations concerned with the acceleration of development and deployment of a number of autonomous driving technologies.
In addition, Woven by Toyota will also join the potential collaboration as the company’s strategic enabler, with the partnership said to be ‘built on a shared vision of improving road safety and delivering increased mobility’.
Both Toyota and Waymo have stated that they will aim to combine their respective strengths in order to drive development for a brand-new autonomous vehicle platform, utilising Waymo’s autonomous capabilities in tandem with Toyota’s vehicle expertise.
Toyota hopes to incorporate its own long advanced research and development in support of a zero-traffic-accident vision into the new development, which is guided by a three-pillar approach taking into account people, vehicles and traffic infrastructure. Through the new collaboration with Waymo; Toyota will also seek to expand further on developments of its Toyota Safety Sense (TSS) advanced safety technology suite.
Hiroki Nakajima, Member of the Board and Executive Vice President of Toyota Motor Corporation, emphasised the significance of this collaboration, stating:Toyota is committed to realizing a society with zero traffic accidents and becoming a mobility company that delivers mobility for all. We share a strong sense of purpose and a common vision with Waymo in advancing safety through automated driving technology, and we are confident this collaboration can help bring our solutions to more people around the world, moving us one step closer to a zero-accident society.
Our companies are taking an important step toward a future with greater safety and peace of mind for all.
Waymo has stated that the new collaboration will provide the necessary aid for the company to begin incorporating aspects of its technology within personally owned vehicles, having spent a number of years providing technology for taxi and for-hire-vehicles through its commercial ride-hailing service, Waymo One.
Tekedra Mawakana, co-CEO at Waymo, also emphasized the impact of this collaboration, stating:Waymo's mission is to be the world's most trusted driver. This requires global partners like Toyota that share our commitment to improving road safety and expanding accessible transportation.
We look forward to exploring this strategic partnership, incorporating their vehicles into our ride-hailing fleet and bringing the magic of Waymo's autonomous driving technology to Toyota customers.
