Toyota Motor Corporation and SoftBank Corp. have agreed to form a strategic partnership to facilitate the creation of new mobility services, with plans to establish a joint venture company, MONET Technologies Corporation (MONET) before the end of the 2018 fiscal year (April 2019).

 

In a joint statement, the two firms said that the objective of MONET will be to realise a safer, more comfortable mobility society by combining SoftBank's corporate philosophy ‘Information Revolution — Happiness for everyone’ with Toyota's vision of ‘Mobility for All’.

 

Building a mobility network for all

 

Combining the first letters of the words ‘mobility network’, the name MONET was chosen to embody the desire of both companies to build a mobility network that provides safer, more comfortable mobility for all. 

 

MONET will provide co-ordination between Toyota's Mobility Services Platform (‘MSPF’), Toyota's information infrastructure for connected vehicles, and SoftBank's Internet of Things (IoT) Platform, which was built to create new value from the collection and analysis of data acquired from smartphones and sensor devices. By utilizing a wide range of different forms of data related to automotive and human mobility on both platforms, MONET aims to “optimise supply and demand in transportation and, ultimately, to launch Mobility-as-a-Service (MaaS) businesses capable of resolving social mobility issues and creating new value”, the two companies announced in their statement.

 

Autonomous mobility ambitions

 

For the first phase, MONET plans to roll out just-in-time vehicle dispatch services for local public agencies and private companies throughout Japan. These services, which will include on-demand transportation through regional partnerships and corporate shuttles, will be provided in tune with user demand.

 

By the second half of the 2020s, MONET plans to roll out Autono-MaaS (autonomous mobility as a service) businesses using ‘e-Palette’, Toyota's dedicated battery electric vehicle for mobility services that can be used for various purposes – including mobility, logistics, and sales. Possible applications include demand-focused just-in-time mobility services, such as meal deliveries vehicle where food is prepared while on the move, hospital shuttles where onboard medical examinations can be performed, mobile offices, and many more. MONET also intends to roll out these businesses in Japan with an eye to future expansion on the global market.