Nuro is testing its autonomous vehicle tech on Tokyo's streets | TechCrunch

"Nuro said testing in Japan introduces a number of new challenges and different driving styles and rules. For instance, vehicles drive on the left side of the road, and Tokyo's streets have dense traffic. Road signs and lane markings are also different in Japan."

"In 2024, it ditched the low-speed bots and decided to license its technology to automakers and mobility providers, like ride-hail and delivery companies. The company's autonomy stack is built on an end-to-end AI foundation model that allows the system to learn as it drives."

"Our autonomous operations in Tokyo are the beginning of the compounding benefits of global deployment. The company, which opened offices in Tokyo last August, did not disclose how many test vehicles are in its fleet or when it might remove the human safety operator from the vehicles."

Nuro, a Silicon Valley autonomous vehicle startup backed by Nvidia, Uber, and SoftBank, has begun testing its self-driving technology in Tokyo with Toyota Prius vehicles equipped with human safety operators. The expansion presents new challenges including left-side driving, dense traffic, and different road infrastructure. Founded in 2016 by former Google self-driving engineers, Nuro initially developed low-speed delivery robots but shifted its business model in 2024 to license technology to automakers and mobility providers. The company's autonomy system uses an end-to-end AI foundation model enabling continuous learning during operation, positioning this Japan deployment as the beginning of global expansion.

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