Toyota's self-driving car hits Paralympic athlete, and it still can't escape the negative impact of the Tokyo Olympics

On the eve of the opening of the Tokyo Olympics, Toyota Motor, as the largest sponsor, announced that it would withdraw all advertisements, and its president would no longer attend the opening ceremony. Some media reported that Toyota made such a decision because it believed that advertising in the Olympics would affect its corporate image if the epidemic could not be effectively controlled.

However, Toyota was ultimately unable to escape this disaster.

Recently, a news report that a Toyota self-driving bus hit a blind athlete in the Paralympic Village, causing him to be unable to compete, attracted widespread attention.

According to reports, Toyota Motor became a global partner of the Tokyo Olympics in 2015 and signed a contract as the highest-level sponsor with a term of 10 years.

However, due to the postponement of the Olympics, the lack of spectators in most venues, and poor communication with the International Olympic Committee, Toyota Motors eventually gave up advertising related to the Olympics. Toyota said it hopes to reduce commercial activities so that the public can focus on the athletes participating in the Olympics.

However, at the venue, the self-driving buses provided by Toyota for the Olympics unexpectedly became a scenic spot, showing Toyota's self-driving technology to the world.

However, on the afternoon of August 26, an autonomous bus caused an accident during the Paralympic Games.

It is reported that Japanese blind judo athlete Shinko Kitazono was hit by an autonomous bus turning right while walking on a crosswalk, causing injuries to his head and both legs.

The 30-year-old Kitazono Shinko was originally going to compete in the men's judo 81kg B2 class, but had to withdraw due to injury. According to the Japanese Paralympic Committee, Kitazono Shinko's injury was not serious and he would recover in two weeks, but his appetite decreased after the injury and his condition was not good, so he had to withdraw from the competition on the doctor's advice.

Although Toyota "cleverly" avoided advertising in the Olympics, the self-driving bus, as a "muscle show" project, has attracted public attention, making people doubt the reliability of Toyota's self-driving technology. Toyota finally apologized for the accident, saying that it was "overconfident" in self-driving, and stopped the self-driving bus route in the Olympic Village.

As a winner of Toutiao's Qingyun Plan and Baijiahao's Bai+ Plan, the 2019 Baidu Digital Author of the Year, the Baijiahao's Most Popular Author in the Technology Field, the 2019 Sogou Technology and Culture Author, and the 2021 Baijiahao Quarterly Influential Creator, he has won many awards, including the 2013 Sohu Best Industry Media Person, the 2015 China New Media Entrepreneurship Competition Beijing Third Place, the 2015 Guangmang Experience Award, the 2015 China New Media Entrepreneurship Competition Finals Third Place, and the 2018 Baidu Dynamic Annual Powerful Celebrity.