22 Oct, 2025
TOKYO–October 22, 2025–ispace, inc. (ispace) (TOKYO: 9348), a global lunar exploration company, announced today that it has entered into an agreement with the Toyota Motor Corporation to receive technical evaluation and quality improvement support from Toyota for the conceptual design of its next-generation small-sized rover, currently under development by ispace for operation in future missions.
Through its two lunar landing missions, ispace acquired significant data from its lunar lander and rover that is being used by customers through the company’s data service. The data service is a significant initiative in supporting private sector participation in the lunar market. With the aim of enhancing its data collection capabilities through its rover platform, ispace is now beginning development of a next-generation small-sized rover.
Toyota Motor Corporation possesses extensive expertise in system development and integration gained through decades of automotive development. Leveraging this expertise, Toyota is collaborating with the Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency (JAXA) on the development of the lunar exploration vehicle, the “Pressurized Rover for Lunar Exploration” (colloquially referred to as the “Lunar Cruiser”).
Through the agreement, ispace will receive system-level technical evaluation from Toyota for the development of its next-generation small-sized rover toward an optimal system design solution.
Moving forward, ispace plans to transport its self-developed lunar lander and next-generation small-sized rover to the Moon starting with Mission 3, acquiring lunar surface data and other information through their operation. ispace expects the data to be provided through its data services so that Toyota Motor Corporation could potentially use it in their space mobility development.
ispace is advancing the establishment of a cooperative framework, known as the Cislunar Concept, among private sector entities towards a future private-sector-led lunar and lunar orbit infrastructure. Today’s initiative with Toyota Motor Corporation is positioned as part of that effort, and the two companies will actively collaborate to realize the Cislunar Concept.
Statement of Takeshi Hakamada, Founder & CEO of ispace
“We are pleased to announce the signing of a contract with Toyota Motor Corporation for the technical verification of our lunar rovers. ispace together with Toyota Motor Corporation aims to develop highly reliable lunar rovers to realize future lunar exploration. We believe that Toyota’s support for the development of our next-generation small-sized rovers, which will be deployed on future missions, will not only build on the experience and data gained from previous missions, but also contribute to Toyota’s own space mobility development,” said Takeshi Hakamada, Founder & CEO of ispace.
Statement of Ken Yamashita, General Manager, Advanced Space Mobility Development Division, Toyota Motor Corporation
“This agreement represents not only an opportunity to apply Toyota Motor Corporation’s expertise to a new field, but also a chance to gain practical spacecraft development insights from ispace, which has already achieved numerous accomplishments in space. We expect this collaboration to enhance and accelerate both companies’ rover development. Furthermore, by participating in this privately led lunar development initiative, we aim to advance the realization of our space mobility business,” said Ken Yamashita, General Manager, Advanced Space Mobility Development Division, Toyota Motor Corporation.
About ispace, inc. (https://ispace-inc.com)
ispace, a global lunar resource development company with the vision, “Expand our planet. Expand our future.”, specializes in designing and building lunar landers and rovers. ispace aims to extend the sphere of human life into space and create a sustainable world by providing high-frequency, low-cost transportation services to the Moon. The company has business entities in Japan, Luxembourg, and the United States with more than 300 employees worldwide. For more information, visit: www.ispace-inc.com and follow us on X: @ispace_inc.