Toyota’s Woven City, a 175-acre smart city under construction near the automaker’s former Higashi-Fuji plant, is designed to be a living laboratory for next-generation mobility, sustainability, and AI-driven infrastructure.
In the shadow of Japan’s iconic Mount Fuji, a bold experiment in urban living is taking shape. Toyota’s Woven City, a 175-acre smart city under construction near the automaker’s former Higashi-Fuji plant, is designed to be a living laboratory for next-generation mobility, sustainability, and AI-driven infrastructure. Unveiled at CES 2020, the project represents one of the most ambitious attempts to reimagine how cities function in an age of automation, renewable energy, and big data.
If successful, Woven City could become a template for future urban development, a place where autonomous vehicles glide silently down sensor-laden streets, robots assist with daily chores, and buildings monitor their own energy use in real time. But the project also raises questions about privacy, scalability, and whether such a tightly controlled environment can truly reflect the messy, unpredictable nature of real cities.
At its core, Woven City is a massive data-gathering exercise. Toyota envisions a community of around 2,000 residents, primarily Toyota employees, researchers, and their families, living in smart homes equipped with sensors that monitor everything from air quality to occupants’ health. The city’s streets will be divided into three types: one for faster autonomous vehicles, one for pedestrians and micro-mobility solutions like e-scooters, and one exclusively for pedestrians in a park-like setting.
This “woven” street design (hence the name) is intended to optimize traffic flow while minimizing accidents. Autonomous Toyota e-Palette vehicles, boxy, multi-purpose shuttles, will serve as on-demand taxis, delivery trucks, and even mobile retail spaces. Meanwhile, underground tunnels will handle goods transportation, keeping surface streets clear.
Artificial intelligence will play a central role in managing the city’s operations. A digital twin, a real-time virtual replica of Woven City, will allow planners to simulate changes before implementing them. AI systems will optimize energy use, manage traffic, and even suggest improvements to residents’ daily routines based on their habits.
Robotics, another key focus, will include humanoid helpers for elderly care, automated waste collection, and maintenance bots that repair infrastructure. Toyota has partnered with companies like Panasonic and telecom giant NTT to integrate their tech into the city’s framework.
Sustainability is another pillar of Woven City. Buildings, mostly made of wood to reduce carbon emissions, will feature photovoltaic panels and hydrogen fuel cells. Toyota plans to use hydrogen, a fuel it has long championed for vehicles, as a primary energy source for the city. Excess energy will be stored in solid-state batteries; a technology Toyota is betting heavily on for its future EVs.
The city’s design also emphasizes green spaces, with native vegetation and rooftop gardens integrated into the urban landscape. Water recycling systems and smart irrigation will minimize waste, while underground microgrids will ensure efficient power distribution.
Despite its futuristic appeal, Woven City faces significant hurdles. One major question is scalability: can lessons learned in a small, controlled environment apply to megacities like Tokyo or São Paulo? Critics argue that real cities evolve organically, shaped by economic, social, and political forces that can’t be engineered in a lab.
Privacy is another concern. With sensors tracking residents’ movements, energy use, and even health metrics, the potential for surveillance is high. Toyota insists data will be anonymized and used ethically, but the balance between convenience and privacy remains delicate.
There’s also the issue of cost. While Toyota hasn’t disclosed the total investment, building a city from the ground up, especially one packed with cutting-edge tech, isn’t cheap. If Woven City proves too expensive to replicate, its impact could remain limited.
Construction began in 2021, with the first phase expected to be completed by 2025. Initial residents will move in gradually, allowing Toyota to refine systems before full-scale operation. The company has invited other tech firms and researchers to collaborate, hoping to turn Woven City into a global hub for smart-city innovation.
If successful, the project could influence urban planning worldwide, offering a model for how cities might reduce emissions, improve mobility, and enhance quality of life through technology. But even if Woven City remains a one-off experiment, the data it generates could shape the future of transportation, AI, and sustainable design.
