French car manufacturer Renault SA, its Japanese partner Nissan Motor and tech giant Waymo, are exploring a partnership to develop and use self-driving cars for the transport of people and goods in France and Japan, the company said on Thursday.
Automakers around the world are looking for partners to share rising investment costs and regulatory risks.
In Japan, a potential competitor for Renault-Nissan-Waymo will be Monet Technologies, which includes Honda Motor and Toyota Motor, with the support of SoftBank Group Corp. SoftBank and Honda have also invested in a GM Cruise drone.
The original agreement between Waymo, Renault and Nissan is aimed at "developing a framework for the deployment of large-scale mobility services," said Hadi Zablit, head of business development for the Renault-Nissan Alliance. Physical testing of vehicles and deployment of services will appear at a later stage.
The two automakers will first set up a series of joint ventures (50:50 split) in France and Japan to develop driverless transportation services. Zablit said a follow-up investment in Waymo is under consideration as “one option.”
The agreement is limited in time and is exclusive in both countries, so the parties are prohibited from working with competitors. Its duration was not disclosed.
