Amazon has finally opened the doors on its new $4 billion ‘rainforest’ campus in Seattle – that is, with a little help from Alexa.
At an unveiling event today, CEO Jeff Bezos took to the podium to introduce the firm’s new office space, confined within three massive plant-lined glass domes dubbed The Spheres.
And, just as with Amazon’s smart home speakers, the CEO demonstrated how summoning Alexa will light up a blue ring at the top of the dome, and the voice assistant will respond, in this case to ‘open the Spheres.’
Amazon has finally opened the doors on its new $4 billion ‘rainforest’ campus in Seattle – that is, with a little help from Alexa. Inside, there are more than 400 species of plants, and the firm is hoping the design will give employees more opportunity to reflect and have ‘chance encounters’ that could inspire new projects
‘I brought a special friend with me today to help do the grand opening of the Spheres,’ Bezos said at the event, which was attended by Seattle’s mayor, Amazon employees, and the press, among others, according to GeekWire.
‘And so if you would join me in directing your attention up above your heads for just a moment…Alexa, open the Spheres.’
With that, and a response of ‘OK, Jeff,’ the misters turned on to water the plant-walls, hanging lights switched on, and the Spheres were open.
The new campus comes in stark contrast to Amazon’s notoriously demanding work culture.
After seven years of planning and construction, Amazon finally cut the ribbon on the Spheres, which are designed to not only give employees an opportunity to relax (briefly) on the job but also reinforce the company’s image as an innovative, think-outside-the-box corporation
The staff members who will work there will have the luxury of admiring more than 40,000 plants from 400 different species from the company’s Woodinville greenhouse
And, just as with Amazon’s smart home speakers, the CEO demonstrated how summoning Alexa will light up a blue ring at the top of the dome, and the voice assistant will respond, in this case to ‘open the Spheres’
Inside, there are more than 400 species of plants, and the firm is hoping the design will give employees more opportunity to reflect and have ‘chance encounters’ that could inspire new projects.
‘We wanted to create something really special, something iconic for our campus and for the city of Seattle,’ John Schoettler, Amazon’s vice president of global real estate and facilities, said at the opening event.
It officially opens for workers on Tuesday.
The company’s hard-working employees will be able to take a break from the daily grind by walking along stone pathways, observing mini-waterfalls, and enjoying the plant life from exotic locales in South America.
At an unveiling event today, CEO Jeff Bezos took to the podium to introduce the firm’s new office space, confined within three massive plant-lined glass domes dubbed The Spheres
Jeff Bezos, the CEO and founder of Amazon.com, took a walking tour of the Amazon Spheres after the unveiling ceremony, revealing the three plant-filed geodesic domes that serve as a work- and gathering place for Amazon employees
WHAT’S INSIDE AMAZON’S NEW ‘SPHERES’ CAMPUS?
The three giant steel-framed, glass-enclosed domes in Seattle will house over 800 Amazon employees
After seven years of planning and construction, Amazon finally cut the ribbon on the Spheres, which are designed to not only give employees an opportunity to relax (briefly) on the job but also reinforce the company’s image as an innovative, think-outside-the-box corporation.
The staff members who will work there will have the luxury of admiring more than 40,000 plants from 400 different species from the company’s Woodinville greenhouse.
The inside of the spheres will even feel like a rainforest.
The climate will be controlled. The air temperature will be held at a constant 72 degrees while the humidity will be 60 percent. In some locations, the climate will vary, with temperatures that either rise or drop by as much as five degrees.
There is even a ventilation system that simulates an outdoor breeze. Ventilation ducts pump in fresh air for the benefit of a five-story wall of plants.
At the highest point of the spheres, workers and visitors can lounge in a hangout spot.
There is also a meeting place for employees known as ‘the bird’s nest,’ which looks more like a wooden treehouse suspended 30 feet in the air.
Amazon even brought in a large, 55-foot-tall Ficus tree that was first planted in California in 1969. Today it weighs almost 36,000 pounds, requiring the company to hoist it by crane and drop it through a hole in the roof
The massive project includes three office buildings in the shape of spheres – the tallest of which is 90 feet tall and 130 feet in diameter, Bloomberg News reported.
The structures were designed by NBBJ, the global architecture firm that also designed Amazon’s HQ1, which is also in Seattle.
The three giant steel-framed, glass-enclosed domes at Sixth Avenue and Lenora Street in Seattle will house over 800 employees.
The new campus comes in stark contrast to Amazon’s notoriously demanding work culture. It officially opens for workers on Tuesday
The three giant steel-framed, glass-enclosed domes at Sixth Avenue and Lenora Street in Seattle will house over 800 employees
The staff members who will work there will have the luxury of admiring more than 40,000 plants from 400 different species from the company’s Woodinville greenhouse.
After seven years of planning and construction, Amazon finally cut the ribbon on the Spheres, which are designed to not only give employees an opportunity to relax (briefly) on the job but also reinforce the company’s image as an innovative, think-outside-the-box corporation.
Amazon even brought in a large, 55-foot-tall Ficus tree that was first planted in California in 1969.
Today it weighs almost 36,000 pounds, requiring the company to hoist it by crane and drop it through a hole in the roof.
There is also a meeting place for employees known as ‘the bird’s nest,’ which looks more like a wooden treehouse suspended 30 feet in the air
For the employees working inside, the company built a suspension bridge allowing them a view of the large tree
The image above shows a 50ft-tall wall adorned with exotic plants inside the the Three Spheres in downtown Seattle
Amazon’s construction of the spheres generated 600 full-time jobs, ranging from design to actual building. The company even called on a horticulturalist to oversee the installation of plant life
The planners had to dismantle part of the sphere in order to make room for the tree and then put the sphere back together again.
For the employees working inside, the company built a suspension bridge allowing them a view of the tree.
The inside of the spheres will even feel like a rainforest.
The climate will be controlled. The air temperature will be held at a constant 72 degrees while the humidity will be 60 percent.
In some locations, the climate will vary, with temperatures that either rise or drop by as much as five degrees.
There is even a ventilation system that simulates an outdoor breeze.
Ventilation ducts pump in fresh air for the benefit of a five-story wall of plants, like those seen in the above picture
At the highest point of the spheres, workers and visitors can lounge in a hangout spot (as seen in the photo above)
Amazon’s construction of the spheres generated 600 full-time jobs, ranging from design to actual building
Water mists from a wall of plants inside the spheres. The unveiling of its downtown Seattle campus comes in the midst of speculation as to which city Amazon will choose as the home of its planned $5billion second headquarters project
Ventilation ducts pump in fresh air for the benefit of a five-story wall of plants.
At the highest point of the spheres, workers and visitors can lounge in a hangout spot.
There is also a meeting place for employees known as ‘the bird’s nest,’ which looks more like a wooden treehouse suspended 30 feet in the air.
‘From the moment we started construction, people would stand on the street corners taking photographs,’ said John Schoettler.
Schoettler runs Amazon’s global real estate division.
‘This structure is about thinking big and thinking long term.’
‘This structure is about thinking big and thinking long term,’ said John Schoettler, the head of Amazon’s global real estate division
A visitor stands on the suspension bridge inside the facility
Ron Gagliardo, senior manager of horticultural services at Amazon (right), and John Schoettler, vice president of global real estate and facilities for Amazon, point out various species of plants inside the campus
Amazon’s construction of the spheres generated 600 full-time jobs, ranging from design to actual building.
The company even called on a horticulturalist to oversee the installation of plant life.
The unveiling of its downtown Seattle campus comes in the midst of speculation as to which city Amazon will choose as the home of its planned $5billion second headquarters project.
The company has made a list of 20 finalists who are vying to host the HQ2 facility, which is expected to generate 50,000 new jobs.
Amazon will announce a winner later this year.