Toyota Might Soon Incorporate Waymo’s Self-Driving Technology Into Your Camry | Carscoops

      Toyota seems to be revitalizing its autonomous driving initiatives with assistance from Waymo.

      Recently, Toyota and Waymo have entered into discussions regarding a potential partnership aimed at autonomous driving.

      Specific details are scarce, but it appears that Toyota intends to integrate Waymo's technology into passenger vehicles.

      Waymo is developing a “generalizable driver” that can be utilized across different vehicle platforms.

      When considering autonomous driving, names like Waymo, Tesla, Ford BlueCruise, and GM Super Cruise likely come to mind. Toyota is also competing in this arena with its Teammate semi-autonomous driving system available on the Lexus LS. While it functions adequately, the company has not fully maximized its capabilities, leading it to be overlooked.

      Though Toyota's initial efforts may not have been promising, the company seems to be rebooting its focus on autonomous driving with a preliminary agreement with Waymo. This agreement aims to explore collaboration centered on speeding up the development and implementation of autonomous driving technologies.

      While details remain vague, both companies mentioned leveraging their strengths to create a new autonomous vehicle platform. They also plan to investigate how to combine Waymo’s autonomous technology with Toyota’s vehicle expertise to improve next-generation personally owned vehicles (POVs).

      This aspect is noteworthy as Waymo primarily concentrates on robotaxis, suggesting their technology might eventually be adapted for traditional vehicles, which would be a major advancement, even if the system were simplified for affordability.

      The companies hinted at this possibility by stating their partnership seeks to “further accelerate the development and adoption of driver assistance and automated driving technologies for POVs, with an ongoing focus on safety and security.”

      Toyota's Executive Vice President Hiroki Nakajima expressed, “We share a strong sense of purpose and a common vision with Waymo in advancing safety through automated driving technology. We are confident that this collaboration can help bring our solutions to a larger audience globally, getting us one step closer to a zero-accident society.” Waymo co-CEO Tekedra Mawakana echoed these sentiments, emphasizing their goal to establish themselves as the “world’s most trusted driver” and highlighting the importance of partners like Toyota committed to enhancing road safety and increasing transportation accessibility.

      Mawakana also mentioned that Toyota vehicles would be integrated into Waymo’s ride-hailing fleet, expressing excitement about “bringing the magic of Waymo’s autonomous driving technology to Toyota customers.”