Toyota to put US$600m in ride-hail

Toyota is extending its collaboration in Mobility as a Service (MaaS) with ride-hailing platform Didi Chuxing (Didi) in China.

Announcing a new joint venture, Toyota says it will invest US$600 million in Didi, which the two companies will use with GAC Toyota Motor Co. (GTMC) for developing vehicle-related services for ride-hailing drivers.

Both Toyota and Didi announced collaboration on e-Palette in January 2018, and launched vehicle-related services, including a vehicle leasing service and various services for Didi ride-hailing drivers at a Toyota dealer in May 2018.

Those cars are equipped with Toyota’s in-vehicle device TransLog, leveraging intelligent analysis capabilities of Toyota’s proprietary Mobility Services Platform (MSPF) to provide quality automobile maintenance support and safe driving guidance to ride-hailing drivers.

Through this new agreement, Toyota and Didi plan to shift to full-scale implementation of services they have been developing in China. By creating more-efficient and high-quality ride-hailing businesses, the two companies will provide mobility service solutions that contribute to Chinese society.

It will allow expansion of various connected services provided by MSPF, including vehicle management, maintenance, insurance, and financing for customers and drivers to realise the high potential of the MaaS market in China.

Toyota also aims to introduce and promote the widespread use of battery electrified vehicles (BEVs) suitable for future mobility services in China.

“Looking ahead, we will work with Didi to develop services that are more attractive, safe, and secure for our customers in China,” Toyota executive vice president Shigeki Tomoyama says.

Didi is committed to helping China’s cities achieve new energy and smart transportation goals with partners from home and abroad, Didi senior vice president Stephen Zhu says.

”We look forward to combining Didi’s expertise in artificial intelligence (AI) based large-scale mobility operations and Toyota’s leading connected vehicle technology to build a next-generation intelligent transportation framework for sustainable cities.”

Toyota and Didi’s latest move is in line with automotive and communications industries establishing new connected vehicle technologies such as autonomous vehicles (AVs) and vehicle-to-everything (V2X) communication using 5G.