Toyota Motor Corp. intends to relocate the first 100 residents of a future metropolis at the foot of Mount Fuji in Japan as soon as this fall.

The initial occupants of Woven City will be largely Toyota personnel and their families, and it will progressively expand to around 2,000 residents over its initial phases, the company announced Monday.

"This year, residents will begin to move in as we gradually bring Woven City to life," Toyota Chairman Akio Toyoda stated during a press conference at CES in Las Vegas. "We aim to accelerate the pace at which new technologies can be tested and developed at Woven City."

Toyota's then-president, Toyoda, unveiled plans for the "living laboratory" five years ago, describing it as a totally sustainable metropolis and real-world demonstration for artificial intelligence, sophisticated robotics, self-driving cars, and smart houses.

However, it will not be available to the public for at least two years, and Toyota's chairman has stated that it may never be viable.

"Will this Woven City bring Toyota any money? "Well, maybe not," Toyoda replied. "As global citizens, I believe Toyota has a responsibility to invest in our collective future."

Toyota's Woven effort includes Arene, a new software platform and vehicle operating system meant to accelerate automobile development and reduce costs. It intends to implement the system this year and make it a key component of its next-generation EVs beginning in 2026.

Toyota will hire a new head of its wholly owned Woven subsidiary in 2023 as part of a change away from a research-heavy focus and toward greater involvement in the manufacture of next-generation vehicles.