Waymo will begin testing autonomous Toyota bZ4X vehicles in Japan next year under a partnership with the automaker, according to the report. The companies announced the deal on Friday.
Under the partnership, Toyota will manufacture the 2027 bZ4X vehicles and integrate Waymo's self-driving system at its Takaoka factory in Japan. The report notes the electric vehicle is known as the BZ in the North American market.
The vehicles will initially be tested in Japan, where Waymo intends to eventually operate a robotaxi service. The report says the intent is to deploy them in other right-hand driving countries, such as the U.K. Waymo has been testing its autonomous Jaguar I-Pace vehicles in London for months and plans to launch a robotaxi service there once it receives the necessary permits.
The announcement follows a preliminary agreement the two companies signed 18 months earlier to explore an autonomous vehicle platform. The report describes that earlier agreement as vague.
The companies said they will continue to look at bringing Waymo's technology to personally owned Toyota vehicles. They also plan to explore other "initiatives" that would use insights from Waymo's real-world operations to improve road safety. Hiroki Nakajima, executive vice president of Toyota, said in a statement that Toyota will also explore how integrating vehicles with traffic infrastructure can make roads safer.