Toyota have announced that their futuristic 'living laboratory' city is nearing completion, as the $10,000,000,000 testing site is preparing to welcome its first residents in 2025.
Company towns are certainly no new invention, having existed throughout the 20th century in order improve living conditions for workers, yet the idea has largely been abandoned due to their allegedly exploitative nature.
Recent years have perhaps seen a revival of the idea though, as Elon Musk most famously has requested that SpaceX HQ - otherwise known as Starbase - be officially recognized as a city so that facilities can be built for workers.
Car giant Toyota seem to have followed suit too, although the ideas presented for what they're called 'Woven City' are slightly different than most other corporately-manufactured residencies.
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As opposed to being a city purpose-built for workers to commute to nearby factories or offices, Woven City is intended to be used as a testing ground for futuristic technology, where the residents will live alongside Toyota's experimental ideas like self-driving cars, smart home tech, and robotics, as reported by Supercar Blondie.
We're close to seeing Woven City in action too, as it's been announced that the $10,000,000,000 project is on the fringe of accepting its first set of residents - expected to begin at around 100 people, eventually stretching to around 350 - later on in 2025.
The city, found at the base of Mount Fuji, has been described as a 'living laboratory' by Toyota chairman Akio Toyoda, in which inventors will be able to test and develop their ideas in a 'secure' and 'real-life' setting.
Currently the only individuals eligible for residency within Woven City are employees of Toyota, but there are plans in the future to open up opportunities for external investors and their families.
Many on social media have expressed their concerns over Woven City though, with one user on Reddit declaring that the project represents "utter dystopia."
"Imagine if it expands and we can an actual 'Toyota city' where every facet of city life depends on a single corporation," they worry.
One other comment adds that "despite the project being awesome, the ad copy is really ominous," making reference to the residents being 'willing participants' in the ideas of inventors.
"Ah factory cities, they have such a good history," another points out, and it is certainly hard to not be anxious about the project due to the inescapable historical connotations.
It remains yet to be seen whether Woven City will be a success once residents begin moving it, but it could indeed prove fruitful to the development of tech that would otherwise be difficult to properly test.