Toyota is training workers to teach humanoid robots various manufacturing tasks as part of its ambitious plan to deploy 400,000 factory robots across its facilities. The company will begin a $6.42 billion annual investment programme from 2028 onwards, positioning 150,000 robots in its own automotive plants and a further 250,000 at subsidiary facilities producing components and materials. Whilst a Toyota executive has insisted the initiative aims for "coexistence" rather than replacement, the deployment raises significant questions about the future of the company's 18,000 veteran workers across 60 factories worldwide, particularly amid labour union concerns about layoffs and worker compensation.

Toyota's move reflects a broader automotive industry trend towards humanoid robots as manufacturers contend with skilled labour shortages and an ageing workforce whilst retooling production lines for electric vehicles. The robotics sector continues to expand globally, with China deploying 2 million industrial robots in 2024, followed by Japan (450,500), the United States (34,200) and South Korea (30,600). Competing automakers are similarly investing in humanoid robots—Hyundai plans to deploy up to 25,000 Atlas robots by Boston Dynamics starting in 2028, and has already opened a training facility in Georgia to prepare these machines for automotive assembly tasks.