As part of its Ten York condo development in Toronto, developer Tridel has created an Innovation Suite that explores and showcases how technology can be used for the future of apartment living. The suite came about through the desire to gain an understanding of how smart home technologies could meet or exceed the needs of residents. The intention was to integrate technology and design seamlessly to provide connectivity, comfort and

Eight Inc. have created a gym in Beijing for digital fitness startup Keep that integrates technology into the space to improve the workout experience and help optimise training performance. As with many other gyms, Keepland allows users to browse and sign up for classes using a digital app, but its use of technology goes further. On arrival, visitors sign in at a screen by scanning a QR code and collect

Action PR have created a new studio design for Everyone Active 's Fortis Powered by Speedflex fitness brand that is focussed on inclusivity and integrates the workout technology into the space. Speedflex is a type of high-intensity interval training (HIIT) delivered using resistance exercise machines in small-group, trainer-led classes. Individuals of different training abilities can be in the same classes because Speedflex machines automatically adjust their resistance levels to the

The Four Seasons Hotel Philadelphia has opened after delays, marking the completion of Foster + Partners' mixed-use Comcast Technology Center. Rising 1,121ft (341m) and 60 storeys, the tower is aimed at engaging the community. Shops, bars, restaurants and a 32,000sq ft (3,000sq m) fitness centre are mixed in with workspaces for Comcast and NBC10, as well as the Four Seasons hotel in the building's top 12 levels. Nigel Dancey, head

Stefano Boeri has taken his Forest City concept to Mexico, with the new 557 ha (1,376ac) Smart Forest City Cancun to incorporate 400ha (988ac) of green space, 7,500,000 plants and 2.3 trees per inhabitant. In addition to public parks and private gardens, greenery will feature in green roofs and façades, helping the city to absorb 116,000 tons of carbon dioxide annually. The city is designed for developer Grupo Karim's and

American cryptocurrency company Blockchains LLC has selected Ehrlich Yanai Rhee Chaney Architects (EYRC) and Tom Wiscombe Architecture to design a futuristic city on the outskirts of Reno in Nevada, US. The brainchild of lawyer and Blockchains CEO Jeffrey Berns, Innovation Park – the new Fintech community – will occupy 67,000 acres of land and feature a number of residential units, offices spaces, commercial facilities, and recreational squares. According to Blockchains,

Salone del Mobile, one of the world’s leading international design and furnishing events, has kicked off in Milan, with more than 300,000 visitors from over 165 countries expected to visit before the show closes on 22 April. More than 2,000 exhibitors from the worlds of furniture, lighting technology and bathroom and kitchen design are presenting their products and innovations to potential buyers across more than 200,000sq m. Several brands are also celebrating their new collections

The Kingdom of Saudi Arabia has issued a license for the establishment of the country’s first ever Museum of History of Science and Technology in Islam. Issued by the Saudi Commission for Tourism and National Heritage (SCTH), the license will see the museum established at the Imam Muhammad bin Saud Islamic University in Riyadh. The project, said a release, will be developed in collaboration with the Institute of Arab and

Designers GSM Project have delivered three exhibition spaces for the new Canada Science and Technology Museum in Ottawa, allowing visitors to “discover innovations and technology through immersive experiences”. The three galleries include 19 integrated interactive and media displays and a number of large-scale exhibits. The first gallery, ‘Into the Great Outdoors’, showcases more than 100 years of technological developments geared toward conquering and roaming vast landscape – from bicycles to

A brightly lit, rainbow-coloured greenhouse has popped up in downtown Tokyo, Japan, inviting guests to step inside and interact with the sights and sounds created by its vegetable inhabitants. Japanese creative studio Party, which is headed up by Naoko Ito, created the Digital Vegetables installation to run over a three-week period until 5 November. Inside the greenhouse, which is covered in LED lights, visitors are invited to “Touch Design. Bathe

A new degree dedicated to experience design and themed entertainment is being launched today to coincide with the latest SATE (storytelling, architecture, technology and experience) conference in Los Angeles, California. Created by the California Institute of the Arts (CalArts), the specialised degree will help to address demand from theme parks in the US and further afield to create new, immersive attractions that utilise the latest technologies. The bachelor of fine

The popularity of eSports competitions – in which opposing players compete at video games played online, often with thousands of digital spectators following the action – has grown at a huge rate in the last decade. Now sports architects Populous have revealed they are developing physical, purpose-built arenas in which the digital battles of the future can be hosted. Brian Mirakian, the director of the Populous’ Activate design agency in

Hyperloop One, the Los Angeles firm racing to realise Elon Musk’s dream for a high-speed transport system powered by magnetic levitation, is considering building a network in India. A major long-term goal for Hyperloop One is to “create a fifth mode of transport that will connect distant cities to form dynamic and efficient economic super-regions” – a vision which has major connotations for the leisure industry. It is already exploring

Researchers at the Commonwealth Scientific and Industrial Research Organisation (CSIRO) have discovered a way of producing graphene using soybean oil. The team of scientists have developed a technique, known as GraphAir, that heats soybean oil in a tube furnace until the oil decomposes into carbon ‘building blocks.’ The carbon is then rapidly cooled on nickel foil, where it diffuses into a one nanometre thick rectangular film of graphene. The team

The National Museum of Singapore has debuted a unique digital exhibit turning 69 drawings into a single giant animated interactive illustration. Using sensors set up in the newly-refurbished Glass Rotunda, the installation by Japanese art collective teamLab allows visitors to interact with the flora and fauna. Titled Story of the Forest, the digital piece, which is 15m (49ft) in height and 170m (558ft) long, is based on the museum’s watercolour

A Dutch design agency is developing a new solution to moving vertically between floors in a building: a system that relies on “vertical walking.” The Rombout Frieling Lab has created a prototype for a new technology called Vertiwalk that makes it easier for the ageing population and people with disabilities to move vertically between floors. This “smart staircase” features vertical rails and a gripping system and is operated without the

Design and technology consultancy Hirsch & Mann are set to transform everyday pedestrian crossings into playful multi-sensory experiences after winning the 2016 Playable City Award. Artists, designers, architects, technologists and creative practitioners from all over the world were invited to propose distinctive ideas to reuse city infrastructure and utilise smart city technologies “to put people and play at the heart of the future city.” Eight projects out of 81 applications

Professionals involved in the development of sporting arenas should investigate the merits of technology such as augmented reality and virtual reality in terms of how they could enhance the spectator experience. That is the view of Pascal Vuilliomenet, vice president for innovation and technology transfer at the EPFL Research institute in Switzerland and co-curator of the Olympic Museum’s new exhibition on past, present and future stadium design. "We can project

Pavegen, the British clean-tech company, has launched an innovative flooring system that creates energy from footsteps. The technology, called V3, was unveiled in New York today (19 September) by the company and London mayor Sadiq Khan, who is in the US on a trade mission. The multi-functional paving provides multiple options to integrate renewable energy production into urban spaces. According to Pavegen, the technology has implications across sectors, including sport,

The Happy Valley theme park in Shanghai, China has opened a multimedia tower which transforms at night into the centrepiece of a dramatic 18 minute light show. The 32m (105ft) high tower – described by developer OCT Shanghai as “a symbol of modernity and an icon of contemporary culture” – is located in a tranquil central lake, where it leans skywards at an angle. When evening falls the tower is

The team behind Rio’s recently opened Museum of Tomorrow has said that they want the museum to act as a hub of culture, information and science, inspiring the local community to great things and to leave a lasting legacy in the build up to this year’s Olympic and Paralympic Games. Speaking exclusively to CLAD, Luiz Alberto Oliveira, chief curator at the museum, said that the Santiago Calatrava-designed structure was a

A leading architect in the conscious cities movement – which is exploring how architecture and urban design can better consider and respond to our needs – has told CLAD how emotionally-aware urban environments could add a necessary element of fun and surprise into our day-to-day lives. Architect Itai Palti, founder of research group Conscious Cities, called for academics, scientists, developers, policy makers, architects and designers to collaborate on making our

The new Museum of Art, Architecture and Technology (MAAT), designed by British architecture firm AL_A, is entering the final phases of construction along Lisbon’s waterfront. Designed as a new landmark for the city and Portugal, the museum will cross the disciplines of art, architecture and technology with a cultural programme masterminded by Pedro Gadanho, the former curator of architecture and design exhibitions at the Museum of Modern Art in New

A trio of high-profile architects have called on the design and construction industries to embrace advancements in glass technology which are transforming the ways in which buildings can be created. Millennium Dome architect Mike Davies, Marks Barfield managing director David Marks and OMA associate Alex de Jong told CLAD that boundaries are being pushed in the development of glass, making the material cheaper, more sustainable and much higher performing. “Glass

Themed entertainment specialists Zeitgeist Design + Production (ZD+P) have promised Indonesia’s first world-class theme park, using a combination of a dramatic natural setting and cutting-edge technology to create a “Narnia-like” immersive experience never before seen in the region. The US$500m (€464.5m, £331.5m) theme park and resort development just outside the Indonesian capital of Jakarta was announced by the Media Nusantara Citra Group (MNC) in November. “It’s a beautiful site,” said

Ontario’s Canada Science and Technology Museum in Ottawa has unveiled plans for a CA$80m (US$60m, €56.5m, £40m) renovation, upgrade and expansion, bringing the facility first opened in 1967 into the modern age. Designed by Canadian architecture firm NORR, the redevelopment masterplan includes five main galleries, temporary exhibition space, an artefacts gallery, maker space and classrooms. The museum’s main galleries will follow the themes of creating and using knowledge, moving and

Boston studio CBT Hospitality Design have drawn on an eclectic range of influences for a US$7.9m (€7.5m, $5.2m) renovation of California's Chaminade Resort & Spa. The property, located in the city of Santa Cruz, is transforming all of its 156 guestrooms to feature a more bohemian style, reflective of the local artisan community. Given Santa Cruz's close proximity to Silicon Valley – home to some of the world’s largest high-tech