(October 20, 2023) TOKYO — General Motors, Cruise and Honda we have announced a memorandum of understanding to establish a new joint venture (JV) company to launch a driverless ride-hail service in Japan starting in early 2026. “GM has always been invested in defining the future of transportation and that’s more true today than ever,” said GM Chair and CEO Mary Barra.

“The benefits of AVs — from safety to accessibility — are too profound to ignore and through this important partnership with Cruise and Honda, we’re bringing forward innovation that leverages our expertise in cutting-edge software and hardware to help more people around the world get where they need to go.”

General Motors says the opportunity for the ride-hail service in Japan, which is expected to be the first of its kind, is huge. Japan has the potential to be one of the largest driverless ride-hail markets in the world as large cities experience high demand for taxis.



The region also has a growing need for new forms of transportation, with ongoing driver shortages and an increasing need for accessible forms of transportation. To address these needs, the JV will leverage the Origin, a people-centric vehicle co-developed by GM, Cruise and Honda specifically for autonomous transportation. The vehicle allows for six passengers to sit face-to-face, enabling customers to comfortably travel in a new way.

“There is an important and growing societal need for safe and accessible transportation in Japan that autonomous vehicles can provide a solution for,” said Cruise CEO Kyle Vogt. “In addition to societal impact, the business opportunity is also exciting, as Japan represents one of the largest potential autonomous vehicle ride-hail markets in the world, with many dense, highly populated cities that have high transportation needs.”



In developing the Origin, GM, Cruise and Honda each brought our unique skillsets and talents to the manufacturing, software and development process. GM will manufacture approximately 500 Origins for the launch of this new JV at Factory ZERO Detroit-Hamtramck Assembly in Michigan, the launchpad for GM’s multi-brand EV and AV future.

“Honda is striving to create the ‘joy and freedom of mobility.’ Through our driverless ride service with Cruise and GM, we will enable customers in Japan to experience a new value of mobility, improve the quality of their mobility experiences and offer the joy of mobility,” said Global CEO of Honda Toshihiro Mibe.

“This will be a major step toward the realization of an advanced mobility society. Providing this service in central Tokyo where the traffic environment is complex will be a great challenge, however, by working jointly with Cruise and GM, Honda will exert further efforts to make it a reality.”

GM believes autonomous vehicles can transform the way people move around the world. "We’ve only just begun to see this with Cruise ride-hail services in San Francisco, Austin and Phoenix accumulating 5 million driverless miles and over 100,000 five-star rides. We’re excited to work with Cruise as they launch autonomous vehicles in 12 additional announced markets in the U.S. and customers take their first rides and experience the future of transportation," GM said in a statement.