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Electric vehicles and hydrogen fuel-cell cars hold the potential to significantly cut emissions, but achieving this requires advancements in battery and fuel cell technology. Toyota believes that artificial intelligence could play a pivotal role in this progress. The automaker plans to invest $35 million in AI research focused on materials science over the next four years.
This initiative will be carried out by Toyota Research Institute, which was established in 2015 and originally concentrated on developing AI for self-driving cars. Now, Toyota aims to leverage AI to expedite the discovery of new materials, particularly those that enhance battery and fuel cell efficiency.
Although Toyota has been a strong advocate for hydrogen fuel cell vehicles and has previously criticized battery-electric cars as impractical, it is now preparing to introduce a mass-market electric vehicle in addition to its current Mirai fuel cell car. This new electric model is anticipated to launch before the decade concludes.
Toyota’s researchers will collaborate with several prestigious institutions, including Stanford University, MIT, the University of Michigan, the University of Buffalo, the University of Connecticut, and the U.K.-based materials science firm Ilika on various initiatives. The company is also open to partnerships with other research entities.
Creating new materials often requires decades of research, but Toyota aims to shorten this timeframe by utilizing AI in the computational models currently employed in materials science. The company has set an ambitious goal to cut global average carbon dioxide emissions from its vehicles by 90 percent by 2050, and advancements in battery-electric and fuel-cell technologies are vital to achieving this aim.
In recent years, Toyota has increasingly embraced AI. In 2015, it launched a $50 million research project with Stanford and MIT to explore AI applications in future autonomous vehicles. This vision was showcased earlier this year at CES with the Concept-i, a prototype designed to illustrate how AI can be integrated into upcoming automotive innovations.
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