Tokyo (Web Desk): Japanese car giant Toyota and investment fund SoftBank Vision Fund on Friday unveiled an investment of $1 billion in US company Uber.
The latest cash injection came amid fevered anticipation of Uber's public share offering which is expected to be the largest in the tech sector for years.
Toyota has already invested $500 million in Uber as the firm races Google-owned Waymo and a host of other companies, including major automakers, to develop self-driving vehicles.
The latest investment, which also involves Japanese parts maker DENSO, will go to Uber's Advanced Technologies Group in a bid to “accelerate the development and commercialisation of automated ridesharing”, the firms said in a statement.
Toyota and DENSO are stumping up $667m and SoftBank Vision Fund, the investment arm of Japanese tycoon Masayoshi Son's SoftBank, will pour $333m into the venture. It is already the top shareholder in Uber, holding 16 per cent.