Toyota Completes Phase 1 of Sustainable Woven City

 

To test its vehicles and technologies, automakers use proving grounds and R&D centers. Internal locations are typically hidden from the public by tall fences and taller trees (if possible). There is also the occasional test bed vehicle like the Mercedes EQXX or the Honda CR-V FCEV. Some of these are available to the public in limited supplies, while others are rolling test beds that are used internally to test future tech. 

Toyota has decided to go bigger. Much bigger, at this year's CES the automaker unveiled that it completed phase one construction of the project. The current construction has garnered Toyota Japan’s first LEED for Communities Platinum certification for its focus on being environmentally responsible. 

During a press conference at CES, Toyota Chairman Akio Toyoda said, "It's more than just a place to live and work. It's a place where people can invent and develop all kinds of new products and ideas. A living laboratory." 

 

Initially, Toyota plans to have 100 residents made up primarily of Toyota staff, partners, and their families move into the facility as soon as the fall of 2025. Eventually, that number will grow to 360 residents as part of the phase one project. Toyota plans to populate Woven City with approximately 2,000 residents as it completes each phase of the project. These citizens of the Woven City will be known as "Weavers" and will work alongside Toyota partners known as "Inventors."

These Inventors will use the Woven City as a test lab for new technologies and processes. Daikin Industries builds air conditioning products and will be working on creating pollen-free zones within the city. DyDo, the manufacturer of many of the vending machines seen throughout Japan, will be "creating new value through innovative vending machine concepts." 

Nissin Foods, which is famous for its instant noodles will be working on new "food cultures." While that seems extremely vague, having a test group of people who are excited to help create a more sustainable future can be a huge win for these partners. 

There will also be an accelerator program that will invite researchers, universities, and startups beginning in the summer of 2025. 

Toyota has already begun phase 2 of construction but will use what it learns from phase one to make appropriate adjustments. Manufacturing for the Woven City will take place at the renovated TMEJ Higashi-Fuji Plant facility. No word on if those working at the plant will also live in the city or if Toyota is keeping those two populations separate. For those in the region, spinning manufacturing back up at the factory and the construction of the Woven City is bringing jobs to the area. 

Toyota unveiled the Woven City at CES 2020, a bold venture to create a community filled with the latest Toyota technology including electrified vehicles, hydrogen fuel-cell devices, and of course autonomy. The idea, to see what works and what doesn't. Standard cars would share the road with single-passenger vehicles. The 175-acre site at the base of Mt. Fuji in Japan would be (according to Toyota) a merging of technology and nature. A live/work environment powered by solar panels and hydrogen power stations. 

The automaker broke ground on the site in 2021, and since then Toyota has been working on the location in preparation for inviting humans to live at the location. The development of Woven City is a partnership between Toyota and Woven by Toyota (WbyT). WbyT is a separate company spun up by Toyota to not only build Woven City but in Toyoda's words "Create human-centric technologies to expand mobility." 

The automaker says the city was conceived to "demonstrate Toyota’s long-term commitment to shaping the future of mobility."