Toyota and Waymo form a powerhouse dynamic
Toyota has reached a preliminary agreement to partner with Waymo, considered the world’s leading robotaxi company, to accelerate the deployment of advanced self-driving tech for personal use via a new autonomous vehicle platform. The collaboration also includes Toyota’s subsidiary, Woven, which specializes in software and mobility innovation. Waymo noted in a press release that the partnership aims to provide tech for Toyota’s next-generation vehicle lineup, which is scheduled to launch 10 new electric vehicles by 2027. Toyota’s motivation behind the collaboration is driven by its history of research and development in support of a zero-traffic-accident vision, which the automaker says is guided by a three-pillar approach integrating people, vehicles, and traffic infrastructure. Automated driving and advanced safety technologies are crucial in forming this three-pillar foundation.
Waymo
Waymo completes more than 250,000 trips weekly across the San Francisco Bay Area, Los Angeles, Phoenix, and Austin. After traveling tens of millions of miles, data reflects that Waymo is involved in 81% fewer injury-causing crashes compared to the human benchmark, according to the company’s press release. Waymo also works with Hyundai, which will begin giving Waymo Ioniq 5 hatchbacks later this year for its fast-growing robotaxi fleet, Forbes reports.
There is competition on the horizon
Tesla is attempting to directly compete with Waymo by launching its exclusive robotaxi service starting in June in Austin, Texas, with 10-20 of its Model Y vehicles. Tesla uses a completely camera-based system for its self-driving tech, whereas Waymo uses a multi-sensor approach combining LiDAR, radar, and cameras. Waymo operates at Level 4 autonomy, representing unsupervised self-driving capability in limited areas until legislation and infrastructure evolve. Tesla’s robotaxi will also operate at Level 4 autonomy during its launch, and the company’s CEO, Elon Musk, promised that unsupervised self-driving tech will be available for customers’ use by the end of this year during the company’s Q1 call last week. However, Musk has been promising that unsupervised autonomy for Tesla drivers is right around the corner since 2014. According to Electrek, Tesla has been discussing licensing its self-driving tech with automakers, but hasn’t reported any progress yet.
Waymo
Waymo has primarily handled all aspects of its robotaxi business, including its app, maintenance, and ride-hailing operations. Still, in recent months, Waymo hired Moove to manage and dispatch its Phoenix fleet this year, along with Miami next year. Waymo has also partnered with Uber to share responsibilities for its Austin and Atlanta robotaxis this summer. Rides with Waymo are available through the company’s Waymo One app or Uber in Phoenix, San Francisco, and Los Angeles. In contrast, riders in Austin and Atlanta can only order Waymo rides through Uber’s app.
Final thoughts
Waymo has been honing a generalizable autonomous driving system that can be used for various vehicle platforms and businesses, but its new partnership with Toyota opens the door to incorporating aspects of its self-driving tech into personally owned cars. The collaboration could ultimately help drive down costs associated with advanced autonomous features in vehicles. However, Waymo and Toyota’s partnership is in its exploratory phase, and though promising, given Waymo’s reputation and Toyota’s status as the world’s largest automaker, the scope of the partnership is planned to evolve through ongoing discussions. As of yet, neither Toyota nor Waymo has given a definitive timeline or product roadmap.