Toyota Motor Corporation and Panasonic Corporation have concluded contracts for business-integration and for a new joint-venture company for automotive battery R&D and manufacture.

Bridgestone Europe NV, (a tyre making and distribution subsidiary of Bridgestone Corporation), and Iris Capital, a European venture capital firm, have entered a corporate partnership to investigate and invest in new mobility services, industry 4.0 and digital transformation technologies across Europe, the Middle-East and Africa region.