Waymo Partners With Renault, Nissan For Driverless Mobility Services

Waymo has announced that it is partnering with Renault and Nissan to explore all aspects of driverless mobility services for passengers and deliveries in France and Japan. The collaboration enables Waymo to initially research commercial, legal and regulatory issues related to Transportation-as-a-Service, with the aim of creating long-term driverless solutions with the world’s largest automaker.

“This is an ideal opportunity for Waymo to bring our autonomous technology to a global stage, with an innovative partner. With the alliance’s international reach and scale, our Waymo Driver can deliver transformational mobility solutions to safely serve riders and commercial deliveries in France, Japan and other countries,” said Waymo CEO John Krafcik in a press release.

The service will initially launch in France and Japan, home to Renault and Nissan headquarters, with plans to expand to other markets in the future, excluding China.

“The story of tomorrow’s mobility will be jointly written, with the cooperation of the alliance with Waymo, as industry leaders, opening new perspectives for driverless mobility services. We believe this partnership will accelerate our commitment to deliver new, shared mobility services, and benefit the automobile ecosystems by placing us at the forefront of driverless mobility new business streams in our key strategic markets,” said Thierry Bolloré, CEO of Renault.

As part of the partnership, Renault and Nissan will create joint venture, alliance-focused companies in France and Japan, dedicated to driverless mobility services.

“As we continue our work through the mid-term plan — Nissan M.O.V.E 2022 — to evolve our business to meet changing consumer behavior, Nissan aims to be an early provider of driverless mobility service. Our expertise in the global automotive industry, and expertise in strategic partnership, will enable us to explore opportunities to grow our portfolio, and deliver new value to customers with Waymo, the recognized leader in this space,” added Hiroto Saikawa, president and CEO Nissan.