While urbanisation, spiralling land values and an enduring hunger for property among the international elite, continue to drive residential towers to new heights, the highest-flying abodes are also taking architectural visions to new, futuristic extremes.

In this video, we take a look at seven of the most whimsical residences for today’s glitterati, conceived for the skylines of tomorrow.

  • The Squall Tower (Dubai, UAE) – shaped like a wind turbine and capable of energy-generating rotation
  • The Wasl Tower (Dubai, UAE) – its clay-based ceramic exterior will help power its inner heating needs
  • Tower C (Shenzhen, China) – to feature a group of connecting terraces with aquaponic gardens
  • Hengqin International Finance Centre ( Zhuhai, China) – inspired by the primal figures of dragons
  • Sarcostyle (New York, US) – modelled on a sarcomere, a complex unit of striated human muscle tissue
  • Gehry Project (Toronto, Canada) – with rotated floor plates and a textured metal-and-glass façade
  • O-Tower (Hangzhou, China) – shaped as a twisting, innovative ‘infinity loop’

View the original video here.