As part of their multiyear strategic
relationship, Waymo and Hyundai Motor agreed that the self-driving startup
would add the South Korean automaker's Ioniq 5 electric vehicle to its fleet of
robotaxis.
The Waymo Driver, the company's sixth-generation autonomous technology, will be
incorporated in a "significant volume over multiple years to support"
the expanding robotaxi business of the Alphabet-backed startup, the businesses
announced on Friday.
It occurs over two months after
Waymo unveiled information on its most recent "generation 6"
autonomous technology, which is set to be incorporated into Geely Zeekr
electric cars and is expected to be more capable of withstanding a greater
range of weather conditions without necessitating the installation of as many
pricy cameras and sensors on board.
With about 700 cars in its fleet as of right now, Waymo is the only company in
the US offering commercial robotaxi services. Its service is called Waymo One.
In the United States currently, it offers over 100,000 paid robotaxi rides
every week.
After being manufactured at
Hyundai's planned "Metaplant America" in Georgia, the Ioniq 5 EVs
will be outfitted with Waymo's autonomous driving technologies. The EVs will be
supplied to Waymo equipped with specially designed autonomous-ready upgrades,
such as power doors and redundant hardware.
By late 2025, the first round of on-road testing for Ioniq 5s with Waymo
enabled will start. According to the companies, Waymo One robotaxi riders
should be able to access them in the coming years.
The firms stated that Waymo will buy
and own the vehicles, but they did not reveal the partnership's financial
details.
In the past, Waymo has collaborated with automakers like Chrysler and Jaguar to
develop and incorporate its technology into automobiles.
José Muñoz, the CEO of Hyundai Motor North America and chief operating officer
of Hyundai, claims that the Waymo-Ioniq 5 integration is the beginning of a
cooperation that may expand in the future.
Muñoz released a statement saying,
"The team at our new manufacturing facility is ready to allocate a
significant number of vehicles for the Waymo One fleet as it continues to
expand." "This is a significant milestone in the two companies'
partnership, and we are actively looking into other opportunities for
cooperation."
Motional, an autonomous vehicle startup that is a joint venture between Hyundai
and auto supplier Aptiv, is already using the Ioniq 5. Hyundai claimed that
Motional is "not influenced" by the Waymo cooperation.
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