Toyota Motor Corporation has instructed its workforce to begin training humanoid robots, a move that forms part of a broader strategy to deploy 400,000 robotic units across its manufacturing facilities. Despite the significant scale of this automation initiative, a Toyota executive has clarified that the introduction of these machines is not intended to directly replace human employees.
The automaker’s ambitious plan involves a substantial financial commitment starting in 2028. According to reports from Nikkei Asia, the Toyota Motor group aims to invest $6.42 billion annually to upgrade its factories with this new robotic workforce. This funding is designed to support the integration of advanced automation into existing production lines.
Under the proposed distribution, Toyota intends to install 150,000 robots within its own automotive plants. An additional 250,000 units are slated for deployment at group company facilities, which are responsible for producing various components and materials essential to the vehicle manufacturing process.
Toyota has already initiated the deployment of its ELEY humanoid robots on assembly lines to facilitate learning from human workers. These specific robots, which operate on wheels, are currently being integrated into daily operations to observe and replicate human tasks.
To teach the robots tasks requiring precise hand movements, workers are utilizing specialized equipment known as “jigs” that are modeled after the humanoids’ fingers. This hands-on approach allows the machines to learn the nuances of manual labor directly from experienced staff members.
The robotic push is not meant to directly replace humans.
This initiative marks a significant shift in Toyota’s manufacturing philosophy, blending human expertise with robotic precision to enhance factory efficiency by the late 2020s.
<small>Source: Ars Technica — read the original story there.</small>
