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.

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.

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