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Architects: line+ studio
- Area: 84627 m²
- Year: 2024
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Photographs:Arch-Exist, AOGVISION, line+
iFLYTEK AI Headquarters Campus (Phase I)
The iFLYTEK AI Headquarters Campus is located in the Hefei High-tech Zone, covering a total planned area of over 200 acres and an estimated total building area of approximately 400,000 square meters. Once completed, it is expected to accommodate 15,000 industry and research personnel. line+ interprets and modernizes the cultural wisdom of technology enterprises, creating reconfigured spatial types and rich environments that integrate diverse architectural functions and usage scenarios. This sustainable office environment supports the long-term development of iFLYTEK—serving as a city park open to the public, a vibrant creative campus full of youthful energy, and a spiritual home that fosters a sense of belonging for the employees of iFLYTEK.
Supercell of the iFLYTEK City: An advanced concept of integrating industry and urban development.
The urban development concept of "supercell" is inspired by the contributions of artificial intelligence across multiple industries and the relationship between the "iFLYTEK Super Brain" and biological logic. "Cell" refers to spatial prototypes that proliferate and differentiate into diverse architectural functions and forms under the guidance of isomorphic and strongly linked biological logic, forming a self-growing and self-circulating organism. In line+'s long-term vision, the isomorphic relationships of the "supercell" can extend to broader land areas and more complex architectural functions, overlaying with the urban base map to achieve a hyperlinked, highly conductive, and growable urban system.
Park, Campus, Home: Prioritizing Urban Design, Composite Scale Layout
Urban Park
The project is located in a high-tech zone characterized by its pristine natural environment. As the first and largest building complex to be established, the iFLYTEK AI Headquarters Campus will also take on the public responsibility of shaping the city. Therefore, line+ proposed the planning concept of "Park X" — first planning a city park, and only then constructing the headquarters within it. By implementing an overall underpass along the Shawan Road segment in the center of the north-south parcels and partially underpass along the main entrance roads in the east-west direction, the integrity of the park and the completeness of the internal pedestrian system are ensured.
Headquarters Campus
Sunshine and nature, kindness and harmony, simplicity and transparency, creativity and inspiration—these are the spatial visions that iFLYTEK holds for its future headquarters. Drawing from the deep-rooted connection between iFLYTEK and the University of Science and Technology of China (USTC), line+ has introduced the "Campus X" spatial concept. This approach draws inspiration from the classical central axis layout of traditional universities, emphasizing a sense of sequence and ceremony, while also incorporating the contemporary spirit of innovation, independence, and freedom to create a future campus-like headquarters.
Spiritual Home
The well-being of iFLYTEK employees is another key focus of the project design. By integrating spaces at a more human scale within the super-scale architectural volume—such as the cafeteria, sports center, and Spark Space—the design accommodates a variety of multifaceted activities, fostering a youthful, vibrant, and inspiring campus-like cultural atmosphere. Additionally, incorporating spaces for leisure, entertainment, and social engagement within the office areas further enhances the sense of a unique spiritual home for iFLYTEK employees.
Headquarters in the Park, Park within the Headquarters
The office buildings adopt a strategy of vertical development and horizontal connectivity, creating a functional structure that combines group-style organization with public levels. This design allows for independent operation while sharing essential public facilities, minimizing necessary activity distances and enhancing efficiency. The forms of the office units incorporate continuous terraces, rooftop tracks, and solar photovoltaic panels, blending the office environment with the park's vertical lifestyle. The terraces, lobbies, and elevated tracks of the office areas, along with the central ecological corridor and landscape installations, integrate with the external waterfront garden and promenade, collectively forming a comprehensive urban art park. This design creates a new experience where one can stroll through a park and enjoy exhibitions within a technology company.
Functional Modularization, Open Space Design
The office space is organized into distinct functional modules, categorizing the main activities into four areas: work, meetings, recharge, and communication. The layout of the large office area transitions from a matrix to a more open and flexible arrangement, allowing for a blend of independent and collaborative spaces. This layout includes various meeting spaces with different scales and levels of privacy, such as centralized meeting rooms, distributed meeting areas, and open discussion zones. The northern atrium serves as a "shared theater," while the southern atrium functions as a "cohabitation square," enriching the overall spatial experience.
New Image of iFLYTEK
In the view of line+, the futuristic interface of technology first presents the image of iFLYTEK as a tech enterprise. However, on a deeper level, it signifies the construction of meaningful spaces, reflecting the interplay between a high-tech exterior and a human-centric ecological interior experience. The building facade employs a differentiated strategy for internal and external interfaces: the exterior showcases a large-scale, tension-filled high-tech image, while the interior seamlessly integrates with a small-scale ecological garden.
The facade design emphasizes simplicity by continuing a horizontal linear language and utilizing modern materials such as anodized aluminum panels, colored glazed glass, and Low-E ultra-white glass to convey a sense of futurism. The application of colored glazed glass enhances the overall cohesion of the campus while boosting the distinctiveness and recognizability of each building, embodying the youthful and vibrant corporate culture of the tech company.
The solar photovoltaic panels incorporate a BIPV (Building-Integrated Photovoltaics) design, composed of silver aluminum panels, cadmium telluride thin-film solar modules, and locally applied gray back-glazed glass. This combination of three materials with varying colors and textures achieves a cohesive roof design, prominently displaying iFLYTEK's logo and the AI representation that signifies the company's essence.
