Nvidia expands Toyota partnership to smart cities, factories

Nvidia announced Thursday that it will supply artificial intelligence hardware and software to Toyota Motor for smart cities, traffic intelligence systems, and carmaking factories, broadening a partnership that began over a decade ago with autonomous vehicle development. The two companies said they will deepen their collaboration to bring AI into the real world, moving beyond traditional data-center deployments. Deepu Talla, Nvidia's vice president of robotics and edge AI, said in a statement: "We are expanding our partnership to advance physical AI across not only automotive but also robotics and smart cities." The pair had previously collaborated with U.S.-based Ready Robotics on software designed to improve safety and productivity on factory floors. Extending AI beyond the data center and integrating it directly into devices and machines is characterized as an industrywide focus this year. Nvidia CEO Jensen Huang is visiting Japan this week as part of efforts to build business and excitement around the potential of the new technology.

Nvidia and Toyota's expanded partnership reflects a broader industry shift toward what Nvidia frames as "physical AI"—moving artificial intelligence out of centralized data centers and embedding it directly into machines, devices, and urban systems. The collaboration, which traces back over a decade to autonomous vehicle work, now spans manufacturing floors, traffic management, and smart city infrastructure. By supplying both hardware and software, Nvidia is positioning itself as the compute backbone for Toyota's real-world AI ambitions across multiple verticals. The timing—announced as Nvidia CEO Jensen Huang visits Japan—underscores the strategic importance of the relationship and signals confidence in Toyota's role as an anchor customer for edge and robotics applications.