Jan. 7 (UPI) — Toyota Motor Corporation will invest $44.4 million in Japan-based Interstellar Technologies to help the private space company develop rockets that will launch satellites into Earth orbit.
On Monday, Toyota Chairman Akio Toyoda announced the automaker’s intention to invest in Interstellar Technologies during the annual Consumer Electronics Show in Las Vegas.
While discussing Toyota’s investments in many technologies, Toyoda briefly discussed the company’s recent work in the field of private space flight.
“When it comes to what’s possible when you work together, the sky’s the limit,” Toyoda told CES and the media. “We’re talking about the sky, we’re also exploring rockets.”
He said “the future of mobility shouldn’t be confined to the Earth or just one car company,” reported TechCrunch and Proactive Investors.
This investment will make Toyota Japan’s second car company enter the space.
Automaker Mitsubishi has developed the H3 rocket for the Japanese space agency JAXA.
Toyoda shared renderings of the rocket designs while speaking to CES attendees.
Toyota’s aerospace partner Interstellar Technologies is developing a small rocket capable of launching satellites into orbit.
Toyota engineers and Interstellar Technologies want to develop a space-based communications network to support the Toyota Woven City, a 175-hectare model city located at the foot of Mount Fuji in Japan.
Toyota has announced that the first phase of the Toyota Woven City will be completed in the fall and become operational.
Woven City is a “walking test course” that helps innovators develop, test and validate new products and services that “drive innovation and build a better future,” according to Toyota.
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