STORY: Nissan, Uber and British startup Wayve said on Thursday they will collaborate on developing robotaxis, aiming to roll out a pilot program in Tokyo by late 2026.
The companies say Nissan Leaf electric vehicles equipped with Wayve's self-driving technology will be made available to customers via Uber.
Alex Kendall is the CEO and co-founder of Wayve.
"So this will be an experience where our AI will drive the vehicle, you can hail it through the Uber app, and it'll be supervised by a safety operator in the vehicle to allow us to begin learning and growing the experience starting here in Tokyo."
Uber plans to launch the service through a licensed taxi partner in Japan.
Nissan CEO Ivan Espinosa told reporters that the companies were discussing whether to extend their cooperation to markets other than Japan.
"The collaboration has huge potential. Scalability is very possible, as I said, so I think this is an excellent opportunity for us three companies together to show what we can do in the field of mobility, supporting society for the future."
Wayve, backed by SoftBank and Nvidia, partnered with Uber in August 2024.
The two companies aim to launch services in more than 10 cities worldwide, including London later this year.
