Honda and Nissan Advance Joint Development of In-Vehicle Software, Unifying OS and ECUs

Honda and Nissan are currently in final-stage negotiations regarding a collaboration in the field of automotive software. The two automakers plan to jointly develop a unified in-vehicle operating system (OS) and electronic control units (ECUs), leveraging Nissan’s existing technologies alongside Honda’s technical expertise. They aim to reach an agreement by July and are currently negotiating details such as intellectual property rights related to the technology. Nissan plans to officially launch a software-defined vehicle (SDV) platform starting in fiscal year 2026. This platform will encompass an in-vehicle OS, the data infrastructure required for software development, and the associated development environment, with ECU development proceeding in parallel. Honda will pay Nissan relevant fees to participate in this joint development effort. The two companies first announced in March 2024 that they were considering cooperation in multiple areas, including software-defined vehicles, and initiated preliminary joint research. In December of the same year, they began merger talks, which were ultimately terminated in February 2025. Following this, Honda and Nissan shifted their focus to project-level collaborations, with this joint development of automotive software marking a significant step forward in that direction.