An official completion date has now been set for what will become the world's tallest building - and it is coming sooner than you might think. This impressive skyscraper in Saudi Arabia is expected to be completed in 2028, reaching a staggering height of 1,007 metres.
It was originally known as the Kingdom Tower and later as the Mile-High Tower. The latter name had to be dropped when it turned out that the ground cannot support a one-mile-high building. It was then renamed the Jeddah Tower, but has since been renamed again: the Jeddah Economic Company Tower - or JEC Tower.
The design is by Adrian Smith + Gordon Gill, with Smith previously responsible for the design of the world's current tallest skyscraper: the Burj Khalifa, which is 828 metres high. By comparison, the JEC Tower will be more than three times as tall as the Eiffel Tower, more than twice as tall as the Empire State Building and almost twice as tall as the tallest skyscraper in the United States, the One World Trade Center.
There are rumours of an even taller tower by Foster + Partners that would be a mile high, but until that project is officially confirmed, the JEC Tower remains the tallest building in the world for now.
Inspired by folded leaves of a desert plant, the triangular shape of the JEC Tower is designed to withstand extreme winds at high altitude. Notches on three sides protect the building from the sun. The tower rests on a massive concrete foundation, supported by 270 drilled piles reaching 105 metres deep.
The interior of the skyscraper will consist of 59 lifts and 157 floors. There will be the world's tallest observation platform, a luxury hotel, plenty of office space and chic flats.
Construction has had a long run-up. Work began on the JEC Tower more than a decade ago, but work stalled for years around the 60th floor. Last year, reports emerged that construction had resumed, and now it is official.
Saudi Prince Al Waleed bin Talal Al Saud, a billionaire and investor leading the project, recently posted a short video of the project on X (formerly Twitter) saying "We're back", and his company Kingdom Holding Company has confirmed that construction has resumed in earnest.
