Nippon Telegraph and Telephone West Company (NTTW) invests in GAUSSIN MACNICA MOBILITY to accelerate its products & services implementation in Japan

Gaussin-Macnica-Mobility becomes Navya Mobility

Villeurbanne, France, 9 August 2024 – 9 PM CET – Navya Mobility 

Nippon Telegraph and Telephone West Corporation (Head office: Miyakojima-ku, Osaka-shi, Osaka; President: Ryota Kitamura; hereinafter, NTT West) and Macnica Corporation (Headquarters: Kohoku-ku, Yokohama City, Kanagawa Prefecture; President: Kazumasa Hara; hereinafter, Macnica) have agreed to invest in GAUSSIN MACNICA MOBILITY SAS (Headquarters: Lyon, France; CEO: Jean-Claude Bailly; GAMA)* in an effort to accelerate the social implementation of autonomous driving services and contribute to solving social issues facing local governments.

According to the agreement, NTT West will hold 29,15% of the company and Macnica 70,85%.

Navya Mobility (ex-GAMA) has more than 120 engineers with expertise in Level 4 autonomous driving software development and vehicle implementation and operation. Navya Mobility is a leader in the sales of the ARMA and EVO, 15 passenger autonomous EV buses for urban and suburban areas, with more than 200 units sold in 26 countries around the world. In May 2023, Macnica established a joint venture with GAUSSIN SA, which acquired the assets of NAVYA. In June 2024, Macnica acquired all of GAUSSIN SA’s common stock.

Nippon Telegraph and Telephone West provides regional telecommunications services in the west areas of Japan. It is part of NTT Group, a leading global technology company providing services to consumers and businesses as a mobile operator, infrastructure, networks, applications, and consulting provider. NTT’s offerings include digital business consulting, managed application services, workplace and cloud solutions, data center and edge computing, all supported by its deep global industry expertise. NTT has over $97B in revenue and 330,000 employees, with operations spanning across 80+ countries and regions, in order to serve over 75% of Fortune Global 100 companies as well as thousands of enterprise and government clients.

Autonomous mobility at the heart of social issues in Japan

Due to labor shortages caused by the declining birthrate and aging population, social issues such as the maintenance of regional transportation and the shortage of drivers in the transportation industry are becoming serious. As a solution to these social issues, the realization of sustainable public transportation and logistics utilizing mobility technologies such as autonomous driving is urgently needed. In addition, the revised Road Traffic Law came into effect on April 1, 2023, permitting driving on public roads with autonomous driving level 4 under certain conditions, and momentum toward the social implementation of autonomous driving services is increasing. The context is all the more favorable for Navya Mobility as its clean, electric vehicles meet environmental criteria in addition to the need for autonomous mobility.

Against this background, NTT West and Macnica have started a business alliance in the field of autonomous driving to promote initiatives toward the social implementation of autonomous driving with local governments and transportation operators. In fiscal 2024, more than 10 projects were selected as part of the Ministry of Land, Infrastructure, Transport and Tourism’s Subsidy Program for Maintenance and Improvement of Regional Public Transportation (Project to Promote the Social Implementation of Automated Driving).

In order to further promote the social implementation of autonomous driving in Japan and provide safe and secure autonomous driving services to as many customers as possible, NTT West will invest in Navya Mobility, which possesses implementation know-how through numerous autonomous driving demonstration and implementation cases in Japan and overseas, as well as key technologies for autonomous driving, and establish a system to continuously supply autonomous driving services.

Complementary technologies for state-of-the-art solutions

After forming a business alliance in the autonomous driving field, NTT West and Macnica have provided comprehensive support from consulting, route design, and operation center setup for demonstration tests and full-scale introduction of smart mobility for local transportation. In addition, NTT West and Macnica have provided one-stop services for designing optimal models, networks, charging facilities, and other related services to realize smart cities.

Through the investment in Navya Mobility, NTT West and Macnica aim to strengthen the development capabilities and supply chain of autonomous driving vehicles and systems. By promoting vertical integration of autonomous driving services, NTT West and Macnica aim to provide seamless services that meet customer needs even more than before. The aim is to strengthen the R&D and the production of Navya Mobility, in France, to accelerate the development of L4 autonomous solutions bringing both the necessary investment and more business opportunities. The French site collaborates with Navya Mobility’s Asia business unit, in Singapore, which is participating in the deployment of autonomous mobility solutions in Japan.

The investment will contribute to the realization of Level 4 autonomous driving mobility services in Japan at approximately 50 locations by fiscal 2025 and at more than 100 locations by fiscal 2027, which the government aims to achieve. On top of developing sales of current product and services of the company, it will also allow the company to expand its autonomous solutions to various platforms.

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Navya Mobility’s Autonom® Evo shuttle

“This new investment in Navya Mobility from NTT West will allow us to accelerate our L4 technical roadmap both for passenger shuttles and for logistic applications. This is an important milestone for our company, which is poised to thrive, especially following the strong work of restructuring we have already accomplished since the acquisition. It will bring us important business opportunities that will comfort our EVO shuttle production in the St Vallier factory and the development of our R&D in La Défense near Paris and in Villeurbanne. I am very excited about this achievement that consolidates our future developments” says Jean-Claude Bailly, CEO of Navya Mobility.

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About Navya Mobility

The company is a leader in the field of autonomous mobility solutions for the transport of people and goods in France and internationally.

With its proven technological and logistical expertise and prestigious partners, Navya Mobility provides its customers with turnkey driving system solutions and an ecosystem of seasoned players, making Navya Mobility the benchmark player in the autonomous and zero-emission mobility sector.

Navya Mobility’s shareholders, Macnica and Nippon Telegraph and Telephone West Company (NTTW), are thus opening up new synergies and growth opportunities for this entity, which combines the provision of the Arma and Evo autonomous shuttles with the development of the latest generation L4 autonomous driving technology that can be integrated both on a passenger transport platform and on platforms for the logistics and port sectors.

The Autonom® Tract dedicated to goods transport is also continuing its development activities within Charlatte Autonom.

The new company, which now has the resources needed to achieve its objectives and provide its customers with sustainable, innovative and reliable solutions, can now address four fast-growing markets with strong demand for autonomous mobility: public and private passenger transport, logistics, ports and airports.

Navya Mobility is led by Jean-Claude Bailly, who is the company’s Chairman and CEO.

website: https://navya.tech/en/

About NTT West

Nippon Telegraph and Telephone West provides regional telecommunications services in the west areas of Japan.

It is part of NTT Group, a leading global technology company providing services to consumers and businesses as a mobile operator, infrastructure, networks, applications, and consulting provider. NTT’s offerings include digital business consulting, managed application services, workplace and cloud solutions, data center and edge computing, all supported by its deep global industry expertise. NTT has over $97B in revenue and 330,000 employees, with $3.6B in annual R&D investments. Its operations span across 80+ countries and regions, allowing the company to serve clients in over 190 of them. NTT serves over 75% of Fortune Global 100 companies, thousands of other enterprise and government clients and millions of consumers.

About Macnica

Macnica is a Service & Solution Company that handles the latest technologies in a comprehensive manner, with semiconductors and cyber security at its core. With operations in 92 locations in 26 countries / regions around the world, the company is leveraging the technical capabilities and global network it has cultivated over its 50-year history to discover, propose, and implement cutting-edge technologies such as AI, IoT, and autonomous driving.

About Macnica: www.macnica.co.jp

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