With the rapid development of science and technology, the travel field is also facing an unprecedented wave of changes. Toyota Motor Chairman Akio Toyoda told a news conference at the Consumer Electronics Show (CES) in Las Vegas on Monday that the company is exploring the development and production of orbital rockets.
Toyota Motor will invest 7 billion yen ($44.4 million) through its mobility technology subsidiary Woven by Toyota in Interstellar Technologies Inc., a Japanese space startup developing satellite launch vehicles.
Toyoda said there should be more than "one car company" in the world - referring to Tesla, which is committed to developing space technology.
Tesla CEO Elon Musk also leads space exploration technology company SpaceX.
"We are also exploring rockets because future travel should not be limited to the earth or one car company." Akio Toyoda said.
Founded in 2013, Interstellar Technologies has conducted seven launches of its small suborbital MOMO rocket, which first entered space in 2019. The startup has yet to deploy satellites in orbit and plans to develop larger ZERO and DECA series of rockets to carry spacecraft.
Toyota said it hopes to use its experience in mass-producing cars to work with Interstellar Technologies to produce the rockets.
Toyota is competing with Mitsubishi Group in Japan's rocket launch market. Mitsubishi's subsidiary Mitsubishi Heavy Industries and the Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency (JAXA) have jointly developed the H3 series of rockets. In February last year, the H3 rocket was successfully launched for the first time. Due to its stronger carrying capacity and lower cost, it is regarded as a strong competitor of the SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket, which dominates the current global launch market.
The first phase of Weaving City has been completed
Toyota also updated the public on Monday on the latest progress of its smart city "Weaving City" project. The car company announced that the first phase of construction of the "Weaving City" has been completed and is scheduled to be officially launched in 2025.
Toyota first announced the "Weaving City" project at CES 2021. The project is located on a 175-acre land at the foot of Mount Fuji in Japan and costs US$10 billion. According to Toyota, it is a "living laboratory" where people can live while testing and developing emerging technologies such as autonomous vehicles.
"WovenCity is not only a place to live, work and play, but also a place where people can invent and develop a variety of new products and ideas." Akio Toyoda said on Monday.
Toyota also said that this fall, Toyota will welcome the first 100 residents of Woven City, and they will all be employees of Toyota or its subsidiary WovenbyToyota. The community will gradually expand to include "outside inventors and their families," who will be invited to relocate to the new city. Toyota said the city's first phase will eventually house 360 residents.