Waymo has been on a role this year. Without a doubt, in my humble opinion, this has been the company's best year. I don't just mean that every year is better than the last, and so this is its best year. I mean that the company seems to have leapt forward a bit, seems to have a lightness in its step and is even skipping at times. It has been quickly expanding, rolling out new & improved tech, and started showing significant exponential growth in rides provided to paying customers. It's not about to be profitable, but that's something you can actually start thinking about and maybe even forecasting.

Now, we get news Waymo is skipping overseas for the first time and going on a trip to Japan. In partnership with Nihon Kotsu and GO, Waymo will be exploring the Land of the Rising Sun. This is a bold move, a big move, and shows Waymo is truly up to something.

"There, our Driver will learn and adapt to left-hand traffic and new driving nuances associated with operating in one of the world's most densely populated urban environments," Waymo writes. "We'll learn how Waymo can serve Tokyo's residents and become a beneficial part of the city's transportation ecosystem. And every step of the way, we'll take a rigorous approach to validating our technology's safety and performance."

There's long been a debate about whether it will 1) make more sense in the long run to try to develop general robotaxi capability, take a longer time on that, but then be able to turn on the capability across the world -- or at least across a country -- or 2) make more sense to go city by city. The thing with the latter approach is that if you could operate in just 15 to 20 large cities, that alone could be servicing an enormous population. What's this got to do with Japan? Well, you've got a few million people in each Nagoya, Osaka, and Yokohama; and you've got nearly 10 million in Tokyo. You've got 1-2 million in several other cities.

Also, Japan and China aren't exactly best friends. There are at least a few robotaxi firms growing rapidly in China, but they're unlikely to find welcoming arms in Japan. Waymo, on the other hand, might provide the Japanese with that futuristic option (and we know they love their futuristic tech) and embed itself there.

"This expansion into Japan aligns with the country's vision for the future of transportation," Waymo adds. "Over the years, the Japanese National and Tokyo Metropolitan governments have been proactively working to address the evolving transportation needs of society and foster the adoption of innovative technologies that can enhance safety and mobility. We are engaging with Japanese policymakers, regulators, and local safety officials to ensure a responsible and seamless implementation of Waymo's technology to Tokyo's streets." (I read that quote after I wrote what I wrote above -- it's just a perfect fit.)

Jaguar I-PACE Waymos will be the first to enter the country, next year (2025). Of course, even if they are driverless, robotaxis need some level of maintenance, cleaning, management, servicing, and charging. For those activities, and also initially for providing safety drivers to ride along and monitor everything, Waymo is partnering with Japanese taxi firm Nihon Kotsu, which is Tokyo's largest taxi firm.

"Initially, Nihon Kotsu drivers will operate the vehicles manually to map key areas of the Japanese capital, including Minato, Shinjuku, Shibuya, Chiyoda, Chūō, Shinagawa, and Kōtō."

Of course, this is a big adventure for Waymo and its team. It's a bit like a college kid going away to study abroad for a semester. What will Waymo learn?

"Through this initial phase in Tokyo, we'll gain valuable experience that accelerates the development of the Waymo Driver, allowing us to evaluate how our AI-powered driver generalizes to new environments through simulation." Good luck, Waymo. Enjoy the trip abroad and hopefully you can learn fast and make many friends.