£8 billion 'living laboratory' city built for just 2,000 people expected to be completed 'imminently'

A multi-billion pound city made for 2,000 people which will also serve as a 'mass human experiment' is nearly complete.

Automobile giant Toyota is at the helm of the 175-acre project, having built a mini city which it's named 'Woven City', just miles away from Mount Fuji on the island of Honshū.

The making of the experimental city was announced back in 2021, and its first residents are now 'expected to move in before the end of the year.'

Woven City will be used as a 'living laboratory' so that Toyota can collect data on 'the use of driverless cars, guided by sensors in lights, buildings and roads' across the city.

The city is being marketed to residents as a 'mass human experiment' for Toyota to test prototypes of its renewable and energy-efficient self-driving vehicles, dubbed ‘E-palettes’.

This is believed to help the company better understand patterns in both automotive and pedestrian traffic.

Woven City boasts 'smart homes' for the people who are set to live there, which will strictly run on hydrogen in order to reduce emissions.

Toyota

While the city has only taken a few years to complete, it's said that it cost a whopping £7.8 billion to build.

The city will initially be home to around 360 residents, which will eventually increase to the 2,000 mark.

Akio Toyoda, Toyota’s president, explained: ‘Building a complete city from the ground up, even on a small scale like this, is a unique opportunity to develop future technologies, including a digital operating system for the city’s infrastructure."

Toyota

Toyota

He continued: "‘With people, buildings and vehicles all connected and communicating with each other through data and sensors, we will be able to test connected AI technology in both virtual and the physical realms, maximising its potential."

As well as being completely energy-renewable, the city is also slated to have been built with traditional Japanese-style wood, making each home as sleek as it is sustainable.

The Toyota website breaks down its vision for the city into three categories; expanding mobility, enhancing humanity and engaging society.

Toyota

Explaining the reason for the 'mass human experiment', Toyota posted to its updates page: "Woven City is a test course for mobility to realize our dream of creating well-being for all.

"Starting from Susono by Mt. Fuji, we will conduct trials of new ideas for systems and services that expand mobility and unlock human potential."