Go's IPO Boosts Japan's Listing Season and Funds Driverless Ambitions

Go’s IPO — Japan’s biggest so far this year — has done more than provide a much-needed boost to the country’s languishing listing season. It has also supplied the taxi-hailing app with the capital required to address an existential issue: Japan’s shortage of drivers.

Go, which went public Tuesday, plans to use the ¥88.6 billion ($553 million) raised in its IPO to expand its robotaxi business and make acquisitions, according to a company spokesperson.

“We intend to use the proceeds from the sale of newly issued shares toward investment in research and development related to robotaxis and investment in business expansions, including strategic mergers and acquisitions in our business inside and outside of the taxi industry,” the spokesperson said.

The Japanese taxi-hailing company’s debut came in one of Japan’s quietest listing seasons, at a time when the government has been telling startups to sell themselves rather than go public. Go drew investments from BlackRock, Wellington Management, and M&G Investment Management in the process, underscoring where global institutional money is willing to go in Japan right now. The stock has since pulled back below its offering price, closing at ¥2,314 on Friday, down about 4% from the IPO price of ¥2,400.

Go’s robotaxi ambitions are rooted in a human problem. Japan’s taxi industry is running out of drivers. The number of taxi drivers has fallen roughly 20% in recent years, according to a report citing Japan’s Ministry of Land, Infrastructure, Transport and Tourism.

An aging population means that figure is unlikely to recover. Ride-share services launched in Japan in 2024, but remain limited to certain areas and require drivers to be employed by a taxi company; restrictions that have done little to address the shortage.

Go was founded in 1977 as a taxi operator and now runs Japan’s largest ride-hailing app with 35 million downloads, 85,000 partner vehicles, and an 80% share of Japan’s taxi app market by usage time, covering 46 of Japan’s 47 prefectures.

Go believes robotaxis will be part of its future — although it’s not clear when that vision will become a reality.

Go has partnered with Waymo, an autonomous driving subsidiary of Alphabet, alongside Nihon Kotsu, one of Japan’s biggest taxi operators. Go is responsible for strategic coordination of the partnership, according to the spokesperson. CEO Hiroshi Nakajima has previously said that Go will not invest in autonomous driving systems itself, according to Nikkei Asia.

Go has not set a timeline for fully driverless operations.

“We plan to begin driving fully autonomously, without a human specialist present, when we validate our technology and receive approval to do so,” the spokesperson said.

In the meantime, Go is looking for ways to give its traditional business a competitive edge. For instance, the company has partnered with Kakao T, Alipay, and WeChat Pay that allows inbound travelers from South Korea, China, and Taiwan to hail Go-affiliated taxis directly from their local apps.

Go is not the only company betting on Tokyo’s robotaxi future.

In March, Uber, Wayve, and Nissan announced plans to pilot robotaxi services in Tokyo by late 2026, marking Uber’s first autonomous vehicle partnership in Japan. The service will use Nissan Leaf electric vehicles powered by Wayve’s AI Driver, and will be bookable through the Uber app.