TOKYO, Japan – An electric vehicle that recharges while moving offers an appealing answer to a familiar problem: time spent waiting at a charging station. At Japan Mobility Show Bizweek 2026, that prospect is also illustrating a broader industrial challenge — how to coordinate the carmakers, construction companies and infrastructure operators needed to make it work.
The exhibition opened Tuesday at Makuhari Messe in Chiba, near Tokyo, bringing together 218 companies, universities and research institutions. Running through October 16 alongside the technology exhibition CEATEC, it places collaboration at the center of Japan’s ambitions for the next generation of transport.
Charging Without Stopping
Honda’s system transfers electricity from coils embedded beneath the road to receiving equipment on a moving vehicle. Developed with Taisei Corporation and Taisei Rotec, it combines power-transfer technology with pavement designed to withstand heavy commercial traffic. Honda says logistics and freight transport are its initial priorities.
“Our strength is charging technology that can generate high power using small equipment,” Honda R&D chief engineer Tetsu Sato said in the supplied broadcast report.
Toyota is pursuing a competing approach with Denso and Obayashi. Both teams are scheduled to participate in trials organized by East Nippon Expressway Company on roughly 300 meters of the Tateyama Expressway, beginning in fiscal 2027 or later. The equipment will supply power only when it detects a compatible vehicle.
The potential benefit extends beyond convenience. Reliable charging along a route could allow vehicles to carry smaller batteries, reducing weight and leaving more capacity for cargo. Those advantages help explain the emphasis on commercial vehicles.
A Global Race, an Unsettled Business Case
Japan is joining an international effort already producing results on public roads.
In France, a consortium led by VINCI Autoroutes, working with Electreon and research partners, began trials on a 1.5-kilometer stretch of the A10 motorway in October 2025. VINCI reported average power transfer exceeding 200 kilowatts under optimal steady-state conditions.
In the United States, Purdue University researchers delivered 190 kilowatts to a heavy truck traveling at 65 miles per hour during testing in 2025. In a March 2026 account, project researcher Steve Pekarek called the test “a resounding success.”
These demonstrations establish technical progress. They leave the commercial calculation open: whether savings from smaller batteries and reduced charging downtime can justify road construction, electricity connections and maintenance.
The likely early opportunity is on heavily used freight routes, where repeated journeys could spread infrastructure costs across many vehicles. That remains a business proposition to prove. Honda’s development program itself emphasizes pavement durability, installation and eventual equipment replacement — essential considerations for any wider deployment.
An Industry Looking Beyond the Car
Other exhibits broaden the agenda to cybersecurity tools that identify software vulnerabilities and rescue robots designed to work with drones. Together, they suggest an industry seeking a larger role in digital infrastructure and disaster response.
At Tuesday’s opening, Japan Automobile Manufacturers Association chairman Koji Sato urged participants to turn collaboration into actual projects and bring more innovations into everyday use.
For wireless charging, that ambition has a concrete test: building a road that fleet operators can afford to use and infrastructure owners can afford to maintain.
Graphic: Honda