diff --git a/jax/_src/cloud_tpu_init.py b/jax/_src/cloud_tpu_init.py
index b53ebf0a3..3b33e2399 100644
--- a/jax/_src/cloud_tpu_init.py
+++ b/jax/_src/cloud_tpu_init.py
@@ -21,9 +21,9 @@ def cloud_tpu_init():
   as JAX's C++ backend is loaded! I.e. call this before xla_bridge or xla_client
   is imported.**
 
-  These environment variables are used to tell the TPU runtime what kind of mesh
-  topology to use. It assumes a single-host topology by default, so we manually
-  set them here to default to the full pod slice if applicable.
+  Some of these environment variables are used to tell the TPU runtime what kind
+  of mesh topology to use. It assumes a single-host topology by default, so we
+  manually set them here to default to the full pod slice if applicable.
 
   This will not set any env vars if a single topology-related env var is already
   set.
@@ -31,6 +31,17 @@ def cloud_tpu_init():
   if not _running_in_cloud_tpu_vm():
     return
 
+  # Use pip-installed libtpu if applicable, rather than system default.
+  try:
+    # pylint: disable=import-outside-toplevel
+    # pytype: disable=import-error
+    import libtpu
+    # pytype: enable=import-error
+    # pylint: enable=import-outside-toplevel
+    libtpu.configure_library_path()
+  except ImportError:
+    pass
+
   os.environ.setdefault('GRPC_VERBOSITY', 'ERROR')
 
   # If the user has set any topology-related env vars, don't set any