Toyota Motor Corporation (TMC) and Uber Technologies, Inc. (Uber) have agreed to expand their collaboration with the aim of advancing and bringing to market autonomous ride-sharing as a mobility service at scale. To accomplish this, technology from each company will be integrated into purpose-built Toyota vehicles to be deployed on Uber’s ride-sharing network.

Separately, Toyota is investing $500 million in Uber.

Uber and Toyota anticipate that mass-produced autonomous vehicles of the future will be owned and operated by mutually agreed upon third party autonomous fleet operators.

The initial “Autono-MaaS” (autonomous-mobility as a service) fleet will be based on Toyota’s Sienna Minivan platform. Uber’s Autonomous Driving System and the Toyota Guardian automated safety support system will both be integrated into the Autono-MaaS vehicles. Toyota will also utilize its Mobility Services Platform (MSPF), its core information infrastructure for connected vehicles. Pilot-scale deployments will begin on the Uber ride-sharing network in 2021.

Uber’s automated driving system and Toyota’s Guardian system will independently monitor the vehicle environment and real-time situation, enhancing overall vehicle safety for both the automated driver and the vehicle. We look forward to this partnership accelerating both companies’ development and deployment of automated driving technology.

—Dr. Gill Pratt, Toyota Research Institute CEO and TMC Fellow

Toyota’s investment in Uber and the proposed collaboration are subject to standard regulatory approvals.