Toyota has been hesitant to embrace the electric revolution, but they appear to have shifted gears at least somewhat by announcing a $70 billion investment to electrify their lineup.
At a press conference on Tuesday, Toyota CEO Akio Toyoda said the automaker will put 50% of that investment towards developing battery electric vehicles (BEVs).
The remaining 50% will be used to develop hybrids and hydrogen-powered vehicles.
Toyoda said this gives the company the flexibility to wait even longer to know if the market will embrace BEVs. Toyota projects only one-third of their sales will be electric by the end of the decade.
As part of their shift, Toyota plans to introduce a lineup of 30 EVs by 2030. They also plan to make their sister brand Lexus fully electric by the end of the decade.
The company’s previously announced ‘Beyond Zero’ sub-brand will kick things off with an SUV co-developed with Subaru, known as the bZ4X, in 2022.
Four additional never-before-seen bZ concepts were revealed today, including a small crossover, compact SUV, sedan, and large SUV.
The automaker also introduced a “Lifestyle” lineup , showing off another 8 concepts EVs including commercial vehicles, SUVs, a sports car, and a pickup truck.
