The annual mobility event in Tokyo has evolved to reflect the seismic shifts underway in transportation, infrastructure and lifestyle. The Japan Mobility Show 2025 — held from October 30 to November 9 at Tokyo Big Sight in the Ariake district of Tokyo — makes clear that mobility is no longer just about cars, but about how people, places and services move and connect. Japan Mobility Show 2025 Website+2Japan Mobility Show 2025 Website+2
Here’s a look at key themes from the show and what they tell us about the future of mobility — especially relevant for markets like the Philippines where change is accelerating.
- Mobility Beyond the Car
One of the major shifts on display is the broadening of what “mobility” means: it now spans land, air, sea, and the integration of digital services.
- The show’s “Tokyo Future Tour 2035” exhibits allow visitors to explore five zones including Future World Land/Sky/Sea, Future City Life, Future Out-Door Life and Future Design Factory. Japan Mobility Show 2025 Website+1
- This means flying mobility (airborne taxis or drones), marine mobility, personal micro-mobility, outdoor/off-grid mobility are all part of the conversation.
- For the Philippines, this signals that mobility strategy cannot just revolve around cars and roads — we’ll need to think about multi-modal systems, smart infrastructure, and integration of mobility with living, working and recreation.
- Time Horizon: 10 Years to 2035
Rather than projecting decades into the future, the Japan Mobility Show is focused on the next ten years — what mobility could look like by 2035.
- The concept behind the show is “A unique opportunity to explore mobility’s future.” Japan Mobility Show 2025 Website+1
- At 10 years out, the technologies on display are a mix of already-feasible and soon-to-be-mainstream innovations: advanced electrification, autonomous systems, new business models, and platformization.
- For the Philippines, this means we should expect meaningful change by the early 2030s — not just distant futures. Urban policy, infrastructure investment, and private-sector innovation should be planned with that timeframe in mind.
- Platformization & Design Freedom
Another notable theme is that mobility is shifting from bespoke individual vehicle models to platformized, configurable solutions that can adapt and scale.
- The “Future Design Factory” zone emphasises manufacturing processes, platformization, scalability, and design freedom. Japan Mobility Show 2025 Website+1
- This means vehicles are becoming more modular, software-driven, and open to multiple uses and services.
- In the Philippine context, this shift offers an opportunity: rather than legacy vehicle models dominating transit, there’s room for innovative vehicle-service hybrids, flexible logistics platforms, and new forms of shared mobility built for local conditions.
- Start-ups & Business Creation
The mobility revolution isn’t solely about big car makers. At JMS2025, start-ups and cross‐industry collaboration play a major role.
- The “Startup Future Factory” program includes 150 start‐ups (50 companies in each of three periods) showcasing innovations in mobility and business models. Japan Mobility Show 2025 Website+1
- This indicates a decentralisation of innovation: smaller, agile players can influence mobility services, urban systems, energy management and data services.
- In the Philippines, this opens doors for local start‐ups focused on mobility solutions (last-mile logistics, micro-mobility, digital platforms, EV-infrastructure) to play a role, not just importers of big foreign models.
- Culture & Experience in Mobility
Mobility is increasingly also about experience, culture and social value — not just transporting from A to B.
- JMS2025 includes a “Mobility Culture Program” focusing on the charms and appeal of mobility: cars, motorcycles, fan communities, interaction. Japan Mobility Show 2025 Website+1
- This highlights that future mobility will emphasise user experience, emotional value, design, and lifestyle integration.
- For the Philippines, where car culture is strong and diversely layered (enthusiast communities, commuters, islands with local transport modes), integrating culture into mobility planning means better buy-in and richer services.
- Key Priorities: Sustainability, Connectivity & Integration
In sum, the future of mobility as portrayed at JMS2025 emphasises three linked priorities:
- Sustainability: Electrification, hydrogen, alternative energy, low-carbon infrastructure. E.g., participants like Mitsubishi Motors Corporation are committed to 100% electrified vehicle sales by 2035. Mitsubishi Motors
- Connectivity & digitalisation: Vehicles as part of networks, services, intelligent infrastructure, data analytics, mobility-as-a-service (MaaS).
- Integration of systems: Mobility no longer isolated — it integrates with urban design, living, nature, outdoor spaces, and off-grid areas. The Future Out-Door Life zone emphasises harmony with nature. Japan Mobility Show 2025 Website
- Implications for the Philippines
Given your role in motoring media and branding in the Philippines (via Autocar Philippines), here are some implications and angles worth exploring:
- Urban & suburban mobility redesign: As Metro Manila and other cities evolve, we’ll need mobility systems that integrate conventional cars, EVs, micro-mobility (e-scooters, e-bikes), shared vehicles, and possibly aerial or marine modes (in archipelagic contexts).
- Start-up ecosystems: Local innovators can participate in mobility start-ups—logistics platforms, battery-charging services, digital mobility apps, and island-specific solutions. Autocar PH can spotlight these emerging players.
- Lifestyle & culture angle: Mobility isn’t just about commuting—it’s identity, adventure, family life, recreation. You could develop stories or branding around how the Filipino mobility culture is evolving: EV road trips, off-grid outdoor mobility, micro-mobility for islands.
- Platform thinking: Rather than only reviewing cars, think about mobility platforms: subscription services, vehicles as a service (VaaS), modular vehicles, maybe even community mobility hubs.
- Education & public-policy lens: As mobility shifts, the conversation around infrastructure, energy policy, local manufacturing, import policy, road usage, and environment grows. Your column can connect the dots between global showcases like JMS2025 and local realities.
- 10-year horizon planning: Encourage your audience (and industry stakeholders) to plan for the next decade (2025–2035) not just next year. Where will mobility be in 2035? What is being built now that will matter then?
The Japan Mobility Show 2025 is more than a car show. It’s a strategic window into how mobility is transforming — technologically, socially, culturally and environmentally. For a country like the Philippines, rapidly urbanising and facing unique mobility challenges (traffic, islands, infrastructure gaps), this kind of preview offers rich inspiration.
