With one executive calling it an “important milestone in our transformation to a mobility company,” Toyota Motor Corp. said it will build autonomous vehicles with Uber in an expansion to their partnership announced Monday, while also reporting a separate $500 million investment in the ride-sharing company.

The two companies said they aim to launch “autonomous ride-sharing as a mobility service at scale.” 

Uber and Toyota will each add their respective technologies to purpose-built Toyotas that will be used in Uber’s ride-sharing network.

The plan is to have third-party autonomous fleet operators (that both Toyota and Uber agree upon) own and operate these mass-produced autonomous cars.

The Toyota Sienna minivan platform will be the basis for the what’s dubbed the “Autono-MaaS” (autonomous mobility-as-a-service) fleet. The vehicles will include Uber’s Autonomous Driving System and Toyota Guardian automated safety support system, with the automaker also using its Mobility Services Platform connected car information infrastructure system.

 The companies have set 2021 as a target date for deploying pilot-scale vehicles on the Uber network.

“Combining efforts with Uber, one of the predominant global ride-sharing and automated driving R&D companies, could further advance future mobility,” Shigeki Tomoyama, who is executive vice president of TMC and the president of Toyota Connected Company, said in a news release.

“This agreement and investment marks an important milestone in our transformation to a mobility company as we help provide a path for safe and secure expansion of mobility services like ride-sharing that includes Toyota vehicles and technologies,” Tomoyama said.

Uber chief executive Dara Khosrowshahi said: "The deal is the first of its kind for Uber, and signals our commitment to bringing world-class technologies to the Uber network.

“Our goal is to deploy the world's safest self-driving cars on the Uber network, and this agreement is another significant step towards making that a reality. Uber's advanced technology and Toyota's commitment to safety and its renowned manufacturing prowess make this partnership a natural fit. I look forward to seeing what our teams accomplish together.”