Toyota Is Turning The bZ EV Into A Waymo Robotaxi, Starting in 2027

Toyota will build the driverless crossovers on the same assembly line as the regular version.

Photo by: Toyota

By: Iulian Dnistran

Oct 30, at 5:54am ET

Comment

The Toyota bZ EV is being turned into a Waymo robotaxi in Japan.
Toyota will build the driverless EVs using Waymo’s hardware at its Takaoka plant.
The first Toyota-made Waymos will hit Japanese streets next year.

Driverless Toyota bZ electric crossovers will start rolling off the same assembly line that builds the regular-flavoured bZ in Japan, thanks to a deeper partnership with Waymo.

The Japanese automaker will outfit the custom-built EVs with Waymo’s self-driving hardware at its Takaoka plant in Toyota City in Aichi Prefecture, with the first models scheduled to go through initial testing and validation in 2027.

Waymo Jaguar I-Pace in Japan

Photo by: Waymo

It’s a big step for Waymo, which currently outfits self-driving Jaguar I-Pace crossovers and the Zeekr-made Ojai minivans at its manufacturing site in Mesa, Arizona. Separately, Hyundai said it would build “tens of thousands” of robotaxis for Waymo at its factory in Georgia, but that hasn’t happened yet.

Following its introduction in Japan, where it’s still called the bZ4X, the Waymo-powered robotaxi will make its way to the United Kingdom and other markets where the Alphabet-owned rideshare company operates, with a rollout planned for the following years.

"We'll start with the right-hand drive markets in Japan and the UK," said Dmitri Dolgov, co-CEO of Waymo. "I think the vision and the strategic partnership is to extend that beyond that, but we don't have any other countries or timelines or specifics to share"

The custom-outfitted EVs will come from the factory with automatic doors, a power liftgate, and ambient lighting, making life as easy as possible for riders. Toyota said the move marks a major milestone in the expansion of Japan’s first fully autonomous ride-hailing service using mainstream, locally manufactured vehicles.

Neither Waymo nor Toyota said how many Japanese-made robotaxis would hit the road, and there’s no concrete timeline for a wide rollout. The American autonomous ride-hailing company already has a handful of left-hand drive Jaguar I-Pace EVs on the road in Tokyo, but they still have a safety operator behind the steering wheel, with a full-on unmanned commercial rollout scheduled for 2027.

“We chose Toyota because of our respect for the legendary safety, reliability, and quality of their vehicles, and we look forward to deepening our collaboration as we scale our fully autonomous Waymo Driver technology globally," Dolgov said.

What do you think?

View

Comments

Toyota and Waymo partnered in 2025 to develop a new autonomous vehicle platform, while also finding ways to integrate the ride-hailing company’s autonomous technology into Toyota’s next-generation passenger vehicles.

“We share a strong sense of purpose and a common vision with Waymo in advancing safety through automated driving technology, and we are confident this collaboration can help bring our solutions to more people around the world, moving us one step closer to a zero-accident society,” said Hiroki Nakajima, Member of the Board and Executive Vice President of Toyota Motor Corporation, when the partnership was signed in April 2025. “Our companies are taking an important step toward a future with greater safety and peace of mind for all.”