First commercial plaza of West Bund to open

Credit: Ti Gong

The first flagship commercial project of the West Bund will open on Thursday to mainly serve employees of high-tech companies, residents and visitors to the popular Huangpu River waterfront.

The AI Plaza will involve nature, art and the latest smart applications developed by leading artificial intelligence companies based in the neighboring Shanghai AI Tower, a key site for the city's ambition to become a world "AI Highland."

Covering 75,000 square meters, the eight-story plaza stands amid more than 20 art galleries, exhibition halls, theaters and libraries on the waterfront, which is targeted to become "Asia's largest art zone." It is connected with the Metro Line 11's Yunjing Road Station and the AI Tower.

"The AI Plaza will blend the cultural atmosphere, art vibes and the intelligent gene of the West Bund to become a unique landmark," said Gan Jin, vice president of the West Bund Group, which is in charge of the waterfront's development.

Credit: Ti Gong

Digital artist team CATLAB will unveil its original multimedia art installation "magic forest" in the atrium of the mall. The weather of the "forest" will change based on real meteorological conditions.

China's first NeoBio Museum and an experience hall based on "The Three-Body Problem," a novel by celebrated Chinese sci-fi author Liu Cixin, will open at the new mall. A flash mob event NBA POP-UP will also be held there for the 75th anniversary of the US National Basketball Association.

The plaza will mainly serve the 300,000 employees and scientists working in the area, some 900,000 residents living in the riverside communities as well as over a million visitors to the art galleries and museums every year. The open space on the waterfront attracts 11 million tourists and citizens each year.

The plaza will be included in the AI app "West Bund Life" which allows visitors to shop or view art exhibitions on the waterfront with a mobile phone.

Credit: Ti Gong

The riverside area of Xuhui, featuring an 11.4-kilometer shoreline along the Huangpu River, reflects the city's early industrial heritage, once encompassing a coal wharf, a cement factory, several giant fuel tanks and an aircraft hangar.

They have been converted into popular cultural venues such as the Long Museum, West Bund Art Center and Tank Shanghai art park. Nearly 100 cultural events and exhibitions are organized there every year.

The new plaza will cooperate with the artists and galleries to host indoor art exhibitions and set up a specialized zone to sell innovative art products.

It aims to become the "AI Valley" of Shanghai by attracting some of the world's top scientists and companies working in artificial intelligence. Leading companies in the AI sector from home and abroad – including Microsoft Research Asia, Huawei and Alibaba, and start-ups United Imaging and Yitu – have offices in the AI Tower.

Credit: Ti Gong