Toyota Will Build Waymo's Robotaxis: Tests Start Next Year in Japan, and Britain Is Also the Target

Waymo will start testing autonomous Toyota bZ4X vehicles in Japan next year. The deal announced on Friday is broader than one test: Toyota will produce the vehicles from model year 2027 and fit Waymo's autonomous driving system at its Takaoka plant. Japan assembles the cars, and the brain comes from California.

Japan is only the first stop. Waymo ultimately wants a robotaxi service there, but the vehicles are also meant for other right-hand-drive countries, like Britain. In London the company has been testing autonomous Jaguar I-Paces for months and plans to launch a service as soon as it gets the necessary permits. So the next move in London belongs to the regulator.

Let's set the big words aside. 18 months ago the two companies signed a preliminary agreement so vague it could mean everything and nothing. Now it looks like a plain purchase: Waymo needs a vehicle for certain markets, and Toyota has a factory. The interesting part is still just an announcement - that they will look at how to bring Waymo's technology to Toyota's private cars too.

Toyota executive vice president Hiroki Nakajima says: "This collaboration will help that technology expand and reach customers in Japan and beyond through Waymo's ride service, while Toyota will continue to explore how connecting vehicles with traffic infrastructure can make those roads even safer." Sounds lovely in a presentation. Would a system that learns in Japan and London cope with a Balkan roundabout at rush hour?