Toyota Set to Welcome First Residents of Futuristic City Near Mount Fuji This Fall
Toyota Motor Corp. is on track to welcome its first 100 residents to Woven City, a cutting-edge urban project located at the base of Mount Fuji, Japan, with plans to start as early as this fall. However, the company has not disclosed the financial cost of this ambitious project.
Initially, Woven City will house primarily Toyota employees and their families, with the goal of expanding to approximately 2,000 residents in the early stages. Toyota Chairman Akio Toyoda confirmed the timeline, stating at a press conference during CES in Las Vegas, “This year, we will begin moving in residents as we gradually bring Woven City to life.”
Toyoda originally unveiled the plans for the “living laboratory” five years ago, emphasizing the city would serve as a fully sustainable model and a testing ground for cutting-edge technologies like artificial intelligence, advanced robotics, self-driving vehicles, and smart homes.
While Woven City won’t be open to the public for at least two more years, its future profitability remains uncertain. “Will this Woven City make Toyota any money? Well, maybe not,” Toyoda remarked. “As global citizens, I believe Toyota has a responsibility to invest in our collective future.”
In 2023, Toyota appointed Kumabe to lead Woven City as part of a shift from a research-focused approach to more hands-on production of next-generation vehicles.
The financial details of the city-building investment remain undisclosed, though Woven’s Chief Financial Officer, Kenta Kon, described it as a “big investment.” Kon also revealed that Toyota’s chairman has personally invested in the subsidiary.
A major component of Toyota’s broader Woven initiative is a new software platform and vehicle operating system called Arene, designed to accelerate vehicle development and reduce costs. This platform is set to launch this year and will become integral to Toyota’s next-generation electric vehicles, starting in 2026.
Though Woven City won’t initially incorporate Arene for mass production vehicles, it will eventually be used at the site, including for mobility functions beyond just cars, according to John Absmeier, Woven’s Chief Technology Officer.
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