gigantic fungi and urban infrastructure intertwine within AI-DA's imagined 'micocity'

AI-DA imagines an alliance between humanity and fungi

AI Assisted Design and Architecture (AI-DA) unveils MICOCITY, a project envisioning a future where humanity forms a symbiotic alliance with gigantic mycorrhizal hyphae to create a sustainable urban ecosystem. In this future, buildings and infrastructure integrate into a living system that breathes, grows, and regenerates, aiming to counteract the damage caused by human activity and foster a resilient environment. Mycorrhiza refers to a symbiotic relationship between fungi and higher plants, located within the plant’s root system and extending into the surrounding soil through hyphae or more complex structures like rhizomorphs. These relationships play a crucial role in supporting and nourishing plants, making them integral to the envisioned urban ecosystem. MICOCITY represents a hopeful attempt to mitigate human-caused environmental damage and promote a sustainable, resilient future. By integrating buildings and infrastructure into a living, breathing system, AI-DA’s design aims to create a harmonious and enduring environment for future generations.

all images courtesy of AI-DA

gigantic mycorrhizal hyphae merge with buildings in micocity

The MICOCITY project by AI-DA draws inspiration from biologist Merlin Sheldrake’s book, Entangled Life: How Fungi Make Our Worlds, Change Our Minds & Shape Our Futures. According to this text, mycorrhizal relationships evolved around 500 million years ago to help algae colonize land, giving rise to modern plants. Today, over ninety percent of plant species depend on mycorrhizal fungi. Sheldrake explains that the global length of mycorrhizal hyphae in the top ten centimeters of soil is approximately half the width of our galaxy. If these organisms were stretched and flattened, their surface area would cover the planet’s emerged land two and a half times. Remarkably, hyphae die and regrow rapidly, between ten and sixty times a year, such that over a million years, their overall length would exceed the diameter of the known universe. These organisms have consistently survived environmental devastation and can thrive during periods of catastrophic change. Based on Sheldrake’s insights, the Rome-based designers capture the moment when humanity and mycorrhizal hyphae begin to form a new symbiotic relationship. 

mycorrhiza refers to a symbiotic relationship between fungi and higher plants

humanity forms a symbiotic alliance with gigantic mycorrhizal hyphae

buildings and infrastructure integrate into a living system that breathes, grows, and regenerates

MICOCITY represents a hopeful attempt to mitigate human-caused environmental damage

AI-DA’s design aims to create a harmonious and enduring environment for future generations

today, over ninety percent of plant species depend on mycorrhizal fungi

the global length of mycorrhizal hyphae in the top ten centimeters of soil is approximately half the width of our galaxy

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these organisms have consistently survived environmental devastation

hyphae die and regrow rapidly, between ten and sixty times a year

if hyphae were stretched and flattened, their surface area would cover the planet’s emerged land two and a half times

mycorrhizal fungi thrive during periods of catastrophic change

project info:

name: MICOCITY
designer: AI-DA | @ai_designarchitecture

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edited by: thomai tsimpou | designboom