Futuristic ‘upside-down skyscraper’ proposed in Saudi Arabia

Who said living inside a mountain couldn’t be luxurious?

Developers in Saudi Arabia announced plans Wednesday for an “ultra-luxury upside-down skyscraper” wedged into the mountainside on the Gulf of Aqaba coastline that looks straight out of a science fiction movie.

The project, Aquellum, is billed as an underground city and tourist destination that “will offer guests a taste of futuristic living through its array of pioneering experiences,” according to NEOM, the same developers who proposed building a city within a 75-mile building.

Digital renderings of the avant-garde project show a 330-foot-tall, open-aired ecosystem brimming with luxury stores, performance shows and galleries, as well as a plethora of green plants and natural light, despite being almost completely hidden within the 1,500-foot-tall mountain range.

The exclusive destination is so well disguised that guests will need to be shipped in from a floating marina to Aquellum via an underground canal.

Once inside, visitors will be met with a “digitalized community” complete with lounging areas and innovative hubs, NEOM said.

One such area has been prematurely dubbed “The Generator,” a space comprised of various laboratories built to host scientists and researchers.

Virtual reality is a major component of Aquellum — mockups show guests donning VR glasses and watching digitized light cubes dance across the open-air ecosystem.

“Aquellum represents a futuristic ecosystem that is harmoniously integrated in the natural surroundings,” NEOM said.

Though widely innovative, the cube-shaped city is hardly the most eccentric development NEOM has revealed in recent years.

In 2022, the company revealed “The Line,” a 75-mile-long, and mirror-wrapped, landscraper city that would stand higher than New York’s Empire State Building.

The $1 trillion mega-development would include an artificial ski resort, as well as robots and AI for the project’s inhabitants.

NEOM is spearheaded by Saudi Arabia’s Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman.