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Toyota is Building a Tiny Utopian Prototype City Filled With People, Robots and AI

posted by Fnord666 on Monday January 13 2020, @11:58AM   Printer-friendly
from the utopia-for-whom? dept.

upstart writes in with an IRC submission for chromas:

Toyota is building a tiny utopian prototype city filled with people, robots and AI – TechCrunch:

Toyota researches and tests robotics, material science, automated driving and alternative fuel technology in labs all around the world. Now the automaker is trying a new and far more ambitious project: build a prototype city on a 175-acre site at the foot of Mount Fugi in Japan, where people will live and work amongst all of Toyota’s projects, including its autonomous e-Palette shuttles and robots.

This won’t be another test site, Toyota Motor Corp President Akio Toyoda said Monday during a press conference ahead of CES 2020. Construction on the first phase of the city — which will be designed by acclaimed Danish architect Bjarke Ingels — will begin in 2021.  His firm, Ingels Group (BIG) has designed high-profile projects such as 2 World Trade Center in New York, the Lego House in Denmark and Google’s Mountain View and London headquarters.

This is a passion project of Toyoda’s, several executives said after the press conference. And it was evident on stage.

“It’s my personal fields of dreams,” Toyoda said. “If they build it, they will come.”

Original Submission

 
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  • (Score: 2) by DutchUncle on Monday January 13 2020, @06:33PM (3 children)

    by DutchUncle (5370) on Monday January 13 2020, @06:33PM (#942815)

    "Experimental Prototype City Of Tomorrow" with international students, not just part of a theme park.

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  • (Score: 3, Insightful) by Freeman on Monday January 13 2020, @07:51PM (2 children)

    by Freeman (732) on Monday January 13 2020, @07:51PM (#942838) Journal

    Well, Disney died. So, whatever the vision for EPCOT is today, it's almost assuredly going to have the "how will that make us money" tag slapped onto it. Walt Disney had a vision and what he created was pretty epic. What you have now is just another giant corporation.

    --
    Joshua 1:9 "Be strong and of a good courage; be not afraid, neither be thou dismayed: for the Lord thy God is with thee"

    • (Score: 2) by damnbunni on Tuesday January 14 2020, @12:33PM (1 child)

      by damnbunni (704) on Tuesday January 14 2020, @12:33PM (#943062) Journal

      To be fair, Walt's vision included making lots and lots of money.

      He was pretty damn good at it, too.

      • (Score: 2) by Freeman on Tuesday January 14 2020, @03:25PM

        by Freeman (732) on Tuesday January 14 2020, @03:25PM (#943103) Journal

        True, but he had a vision for the use of that money as well. He couldn't exactly do what he wanted with a couple pennies that he could rub together. Musk kinda reminds me of Walt Disney, they both had a few crackpot ideas, but the major difference is that I'd probably have liked to spend an afternoon with Disney. Musk doesn't exactly come across as a family friendly kinda guy.

        --
        Joshua 1:9 "Be strong and of a good courage; be not afraid, neither be thou dismayed: for the Lord thy God is with thee"