The Japanese rivals said they may work together to produce key components for electric vehicles.

They might also help each other produce artificial intelligence applications in automotive software platforms.

That move comes as the automakers face strong competition from China's BYD, Tesla and other EV makers.

Nissan CEO Makoto Uchida said "Emerging players are very aggressive and making inroads at incredible speed."

He warned his company could not win the competition by sticking to conventional wisdom and a traditional approach.

Honda confirmed the companies signed a non-binding memorandum of understanding to look at areas of potential collaboration.

But the automaker added it has not yet decided the scope of that relationship.

Nissan has existing business alliances with Renault and Mitsubishi.

It cooperates with the French firm on EVs, mainly in Europe.

Honda is aiming to increase its ratio of electric vehicles and fuel cell vehicles to 100% of all sales by 2040.