Honda, GM-backed Cruise take on Tokyo with commercial robotaxi service from 2026

TOKYO – General Motors-backed autonomous driving company Cruise will begin a commercial robotaxi service in Tokyo through a partnership with Japanese automaker Honda.

Honda CEO Toshihiro Mibe and Cruise boss Kyle Vogt announced the plan at an Oct. 19 news conference here at Honda Motor Co.'s global headquarters.

GM CEO Mary Barra also attended via a video link.

The project represents a step forward for autonomous driving development in Japan, where local players typically trail pioneering tech companies in the U.S. or China.

Honda, Japan's No. 2 carmaker, is a domestic leader in self-driving technology. It was the first domestic carmaker to deploy a Level 3 autonomous driving system. It took a stake in Cruise in 2018 and has been working with GM and Cruise to develop the box-like Origin automated vehicle.

The companies began testing the Origin in Japan this year.

They will begin testing the Origin in Tokyo next year with the target of starting a driverless automated ride-hailing service in the nation's capital in 2026.

Honda's Mibe said the project will begin with dozens of Origin vehicles and eventually scale up to 500. If the rollout goes well in Tokyo, Honda will expand the service to other cities.

"The possibility of services is unlimited," Mibe said.

The idea is for the Origin to come to a person's location, pick them up and take them where they want to go, all without a human driver behind the wheel. In fact, the Origin doesn't even have a steering wheel. Mibe said the service would be useful to the elderly, children, tourists and business people.

It can seat up to six people. And it can also haul deliveries, like a courier service.

Tokyo's hive of densely packed, crowded streets provides a uniquely challenging test bed for driverless mobility. But autonomous driving is touted as delivering big benefits in Japan, which is struggling to cope with a nationwide drivers' shortage and a rapidly aging population hanging up their car keys. Tokyo's density also makes the city well-suited to ride-hailing services.

Cruise already tests the Origin in San Francisco and Austin, Texas.

Vogt said there will no doubt be new challenges in Tokyo.

Mibe said the service still needs regulatory approval from government ministries. GM, Honda and Cruise aim to establish a joint venture next year to run the driverless ride-hailing service.

- Naoto Okamura contributed to this report.