Denso and Toyota to form new JV for in-vehicle semiconductors

Denso Corporation and Toyota Motor Corporation today agreed to establish a joint venture for research and advanced development of next-generation, in-vehicle semiconductors. The two companies will study the details and aim to establish a new company in April 2020.

Recently, electronic controls have been increasingly implemented into vehicles. Furthermore, the number of in-vehicle semiconductors has also grown, and the performance of these semiconductors has continuously improved. To create a future of mobility that is safe and sustainable, it is necessary to develop next-generation semiconductors that are integral to technology innovations, such as connected cars, automated driving, sharing mobility and electrification.

In June 2018, Denso and Toyota agreed to consolidate the electronic components production and development functions to Denso. Based on this agreement, they have been working to achieve a speedy and competitive production and development system.

Denso has decided to establish the new company for research and advanced development of in-vehicle semiconductors, and will establish a stronger system for R&D of semiconductors. Denso has agreed to accept equity participation from Toyota for the new company to accelerate the speed of development by taking full advantage of Toyota's knowledge from a mobility viewpoint. Through equity participation in the new company, Toyota will achieve further technology innovations by introducing cutting-edge semiconductor technologies from the planning phase when developing its mobility services and vehicles.

The new company will conduct advanced research on the basic structure and processing method of next-generation semiconductors and develop electronic components by implementing semiconductors, such as power modules for electric vehicles and periphery monitoring sensors for automated vehicles, thereby contributing to creating the future of mobility.

Planned to be operational in April 2020, the new company will be located in Japan and will have an initial capital of around 50 million yen. As per the agreement, Denso will have 51 percent ownership and the rest will be with Toyota. At the time of the establishment of the company, it will have around 500 employees.