Waymo, a subsidiary of Alphabet, has announced a collaboration with Japanese partners Go, a taxi-hailing platform, and Nihon Kotsu, a taxi operator, to test its autonomous vehicle technology in Tokyo.
This initiative comes after Cruise, backed by Honda, faced setbacks in its autonomous driving ambitions in Japan, leaving the market open for Waymo.
Waymo has selected Tokyo for its dense urban environment, which presents numerous challenges for autonomous driving, including pedestrians and traffic congestion.
Starting in the new year, the three companies will test the Waymo Driver system using an initial fleet of 25 electric vehicles manufactured by Jaguar Land Rover. The number of vehicles is expected to increase over time.
Waymo aims to enhance safety through artificial intelligence that generates simulations based on real traffic data. Alphabet has not disclosed the latest revenue figures for Waymo, but its 'Other Bets' segment, which includes the robotaxi service, saw a 31% increase to $388 million.
Despite a previous incident in Phoenix, Arizona, where Google recalled over 600 vehicles, recent developments indicate a significant acceleration in the advancement of onboard technology.