Honda, GM and Cruise Announce Driverless Taxis for Tokyo

Driverless taxi services have been under test in America and China for some time now, with perhaps the most famous being the Cruise autonomous vehicle ride hailing system on widespread test in San Francisco. In every case, the systems are based on conventional passenger cars, but truly autonomous ride hailing will use dedicated vehicles built as a passenger cabin without conventional controls like a steering wheel. The Cruise Origin is such a vehicle and in a recent press release from Honda/GM and Cruise, there is now a firm start date for truly autonomous operations. Tokyo will be the city to see a fleet of cruise Origins on public roads, starting in 2026. The Tokyo urban fleet is targeted at 500 vehicles, with subsequent expansion to areas outside of the city centre. * * * *ABOUT END OF THE LINE:* Manufacturing veteran James Anderton expresses his compelling and unique opinions about the state of the manufacturing sector and the engineering industry more broadly. He shares his thoughts and insights to help engineering and manufacturing professionals navigate through the challenges of world events, the blending old with new technologies, evolving processes, gaps in skilled labour, in an effort to help maximize productivity of their daily operations. Occasionally, he just likes to vent. James is a former editor of trade publications in the automotive, metalworking and plastics industries with contributions to a wide range of print and on-line publications. He also brings prior industry experience in quality and manufacturing for a Tier One automotive supplier. * * * *JOIN ENGINEERING.COM:* Easy, free. Join and get access to more stories, videos, white papers, research reports made for the engineering professional. Customize your profile to follow topics you care about and engage with the global engineering community. https://engineering.com * * * *STEM GAMES:* Play some fun engineering-based STEM games on engineering.com: https://www.engineering.com/resources/games * * * *ENGINEERING.COM TV:* Watch in-depth engineering videos made for the engineering professional and found exclusively on engineering.com TV: Panel Expert Roundtables: https://www.engineering.com/viewAll?category=roundtables For the Design Engineer: https://www.engineering.com/viewAll?category=designing-the-future For the Manufacturing Engineer: https://www.engineering.com/viewAll?category=manufacturing-the-future * * * #cruiseorigin #autonomousdriving #tokyo

Added 17 Jul 2026