TOKYO -- The troubled, ever-evolving Tokyo auto show will be rechristened the Japan Mobility Show when it returns in 2023 under a bigger tent that aims to include everything from motorcycles to startups and an array of new participants under an “all-industry” banner.
Organizers hope the reboot rekindles international interest in Asia’s erstwhile premier auto expo and in Japan as a technology leader. The Tokyo car conclave used to hum with global debuts. But at the last gathering in 2019, only four international brands bothered to show.
Next year, the ailing show aims to attract 1 million visitors, according to the Japan Automobile Manufacturers Association, which has hosted the Tokyo show since its inception in 1954.
JAMA Chairman Akio Toyoda unveiled the new name on Thursday, a day before the auto industry lobbying group outlined more details, including the 2023 event’s Oct. 25-Nov. 5 show dates.
“Simply put, the aim of the Japan Mobility Show is to re-energize Japan by focusing on automobiles,” said Toyoda, who is also president of Toyota.
“We set a framework for mobility so other industries can join the event. I hope it will be a show that re-energizes Japan.”
Toyoda did not elaborate on the scope of how many sectors and companies might be included.
But Jun Nagata, head of the show’s organizing committee and Toyota’s chief communications officer, cited software companies involved in mobility-as-a-service as potential participants.
Promotional graphics for the JMS depict flying cars and robotic dogs among the attractions.
Media days will be Oct. 25-26, and the show will be held at Tokyo Big Sight, the sprawling convention center on the city’s waterfront that hosted the last Tokyo auto show.
In April 2021, JAMA canceled the biennial Tokyo show scheduled for the autumn of that year, shutting down the event for the first time in its history, because of the COVID-19 pandemic.