Toyota Motor and Alphabet’s Waymo announced a potential collaboration on Wednesday to create a new autonomous vehicle (AV) platform and enhance next-generation personally owned vehicles (POVs).
Under the agreement, Toyota will build the autonomous vehicle platform that will be integrated into Waymo’s fleet, according to a Waymo spokesperson. Additionally, both companies will explore how Waymo’s AV technology can be applied to Toyota’s personal vehicle lineup.
The joint statement from Toyota and Waymo emphasized their goal to speed up the development and adoption of driver assistance and automated driving technologies for POVs.
Discussions will also include the possibility of expanding their partnership, with Toyota’s autonomous technology division, Woven by Toyota, expected to play a significant role in the collaboration.
Waymo, which has been expanding through partnerships with automakers like Hyundai and Zeekr, and ride-hailing service Uber, affirmed that its collaborations with these companies are ongoing.
In a statement last week, Alphabet CEO Sundar Pichai revealed that, in the future, people may be able to own Waymo’s self-driving taxis.
Earlier this month, Waymo began collecting data in Tokyo to better understand the local infrastructure and driving patterns. This initiative includes human-driven test rides aimed at mapping key areas of the Japanese capital.
Meanwhile, Toyota’s Woven by Toyota division is actively developing the Arene automotive software platform and has established a testing site, Woven City, in Shizuoka Prefecture to experiment with mobility technologies and services.
