Riders would hail the cars in GO, the app many Tokyo residents already use for ordinary taxis, or in Waymo's own app, and the fleet would grow from a first batch to about 100 vehicles
Alphabet's Waymo, Tokyo taxi company Nihon Kotsu and GO Inc., which runs the GO app, have agreed to prepare a robotaxi service for Tokyo and aim to open it to the public in 2027. In their joint Japanese announcement, the three companies call it the country's first commercial taxi service to run with no driver on board.
Waymo would supply the self-driving technology and the systems that manage the cars, Nihon Kotsu would run day-to-day operations and the depots, and GO would fit the service into Japan's taxi industry.
The cars are meant to be available around the clock and to work alongside human-driven taxis. Nihon Kotsu's president says that mix could help cover a coming shortage of drivers, and the partners present the service as one answer to Japan's shrinking, aging population.
The partners announced their deal in December 2024. Since 2025, Waymo cars have been tested on public roads in seven of Tokyo's wards, driving themselves while Nihon Kotsu crew members supervised. The test drives gave the system experience with the city's narrow residential lanes and crowded districts.
Waymo says the 2027 timeline is contingent. The partners will set a start date only once safety is confirmed and national and local authorities have granted the road-traffic and passenger-transport permits, and Waymo still has to finish validating its technology and the joint operations.