Toyota has opened Woven City, a purpose-built smart community in Japan designed to test emerging technologies such as autonomous vehicles, robotics, and connected homes.
The experimental city sits on the site of a former Toyota factory at the base of Mount Fuji. It features hydrogen-powered housing and will eventually host more than 2,000 residents - primarily Toyota employees, researchers, and their families. The first group of about 360 residents has already moved in.
The community will serve as a “living laboratory,” according to chairman Akio Toyoda, where residents act as active participants in real-world trials of next-generation products. Toyota plans to test a wide range of innovations, including:
- Autonomous mobility: from self-flying taxis and drones that escort residents home, to e-scooters, hoverboards, and Toyota’s own e-Palette self-driving shuttles.
- Smart homes and robotics: domestic robots that help with daily chores such as cooking, folding laundry, and supporting elderly residents.
- Digital companions: interactive robotic pets designed to provide comfort and assistance.
Toyoda emphasised that Woven City is “a test course for the future, not just a town.” He described the initiative as a form of kakezan - a Japanese term for multiplication - where collaboration between companies, researchers, and residents can amplify innovation.
The project, first announced in 2020, is led by Toyoda’s son, Daisuke. Its name references Toyota’s origins as a loom manufacturer, highlighting the company’s ambition to “weave” together people, technology, and community in building a sustainable future.