Groupe Renault, Nissan Motor Co., and Waymo have entered into an exclusive agreement for an initial period to explore all aspects of driverless mobility services for passengers and deliveries in France and Japan.

The agreement is designed to bring together the strengths of each party and expand expertise by assessing market opportunities, working together to research commercial, legal and regulatory issues related to driverless transportation-as-a-service offerings in France and Japan.

The Alliance of Renault-Nissan-Mitsubishi has a global footprint and portfolio covering every segment of passenger and light commercial vehicles. Since its start as the Google Self-Driving Car Project in 2009, Waymo has been focused on improving transportation for all people by building the world’s most experienced driver. To date, Waymo has driven more than 10 million miles autonomously on public roads across 25 US cities and completed more than 7 billion miles of simulation testing.

The agreement marks a first step to developing long-term, profitable driverless mobility services operations. This analysis will first take place in France and Japan, home to Groupe Renault and Nissan headquarters, respectively, and may expand to other markets, excluding China, in the future.

To further the exploration process, Groupe Renault and Nissan will create joint venture Alliance-focused companies in France and Japan dedicated to driverless mobility services.

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.

—John Krafcik, Chief Executive Officer, Waymo