This architecture firm is introducing inflatable skyscrapers

Zumo does not give details on how these innovations would be sustainable if they ever came to be, but we can imagine that they could easily be torn down to be reused in another space if the need should arise.

They represent a future where our buildings could soar over our skylines without incurring a damaging carbon footprint. These inflatable skyscrapers are just as much about building green as they are about building high.

Taking inspiration

The architects may want to take inspiration from the Shanghai Tower, a shining example of the necessary steps architects must take to produce energy-efficient buildings. Completed in 2015, the Shanghai Tower is currently the second tallest building in the world and possesses the highest possible energy rating - LEED Platinum -- despite towering over the Shanghai skyline. 

The tower uses cutting-edge technology and engineering to reduce its environmental impact. Its unique shape and design allow it to effectively resist wind load, which saved 20,000 metric tons of steel reinforcement during its construction. It also boasts a huge reliance on clean, renewable energy, significantly reducing the tower's consumption and emissions. This is a landmark success in China, where pollution and energy consumption have been destructive and alarming for decades.

Can these new inflatable structures follow in the tower's footsteps? Will they introduce green energy and innovative construction methods to reduce the emissions resulting from their construction?

For now, these towers remain but a dream: a few carefully crafted images that offer hope of an improved skyline. In the future, however, they may be so much more.