Waymo and Toyota Prepare bZ4X Robotaxis for Japan

Waymo and Toyota are moving their robotaxi partnership from exploration toward real vehicles. The companies plan to begin testing autonomous Toyota bZ4X electric SUVs in Japan in 2027, with the United Kingdom and other right-hand-drive markets positioned as possible next destinations.

Toyota will build the vehicles at its Takaoka plant in Toyota City, Japan. The automaker will also integrate Waymo’s autonomous-driving hardware there, pairing its manufacturing experience with the self-driving company’s software and sensor system. The bZ4X is known as the BZ in North America, but the Japan-bound fleet will use the original model name.

A new vehicle for Waymo’s international plans

The Toyota fleet will not be Waymo’s first test in Japan. The company began gathering local driving data with Jaguar I-Pace vehicles in Tokyo in 2025, using trained drivers from the taxi operator Nihon Kotsu. Waymo has said it intends to launch a fully autonomous ride-hailing service in Tokyo, although the timing for adding the Toyota vehicles to commercial service remains unclear.

The partnership also gives Waymo a vehicle suited to countries where traffic keeps to the left and cars are right-hand drive. In the United Kingdom, the company has already been testing Jaguar vehicles in London and is working toward a service launch subject to regulatory approval. A Toyota-built platform could help it standardize future expansion beyond the United States.

The partnership may reach private cars

Waymo and Toyota first announced a preliminary agreement in April 2025. The latest plan provides a more concrete result: a defined model, a factory integration process and a 2027 testing window. For now, the arrangement resembles a vehicle-supply partnership built around Waymo’s robotaxi business.

Both companies have also left open a larger possibility. They will continue studying whether Waymo’s technology could eventually be offered in personally owned Toyota vehicles, while using lessons from commercial autonomous operations to improve road safety.

That consumer-car idea is still exploratory. The immediate milestone is the Japan test fleet, which will show how well Waymo’s system transfers to a Toyota platform and to dense, right-hand-drive urban markets.