American investors suggest building "freedom city" tech hub in Greenland

American tech entrepreneurs have opened up talks with officials about placing research-oriented freedom cities on the island of Greenland, according to a report in Reuters.

Last week, news website Reuters reported that at least three anonymized sources had claimed investors in America's tech industry have been eyeing the island, owned by Denmark, as a site for new cities.

According to the reports, the communities would be freedom cities, established with minimal regulations to promote business.

Reuters reported that the "discussions are in early stages" but suggested that the plans are being "taken seriously" by the prospective US ambassador to Denmark, Ken Howery.

"The vision for Greenland, one of the people said, could include a hub for artificial intelligence, autonomous vehicles, space launches, micro nuclear reactors and high-speed rail," reported Reuters.

Freedom cities were first pitched by US president Donald Trump in a campaign video in 2023. The proposal called for designs of technologically advanced ground-up communities and industrial centres to be built on federal land.

During his campaign, Trump also suggested that the US might purchase or even invade Greenland in order to secure it, and the Reuters reporting suggested that establishing of these so-called freedom cities may figure into this plan.

There have been no details released about who would design such a city.

And though the US operates a military base on the island, the government of Denmark and groups within Greenland have spoken out against overtures from Trump's administration.

Reuters' reporting speculated that the growing influence of tech magnates within the US government plays into "administration’s consideration" of the plan.

It mentions the previous support of regulation-evading urban projects such as Praxis and Próspera in Honduras by tech magnates such as Elon Musk, Marc Andreessen and Peter Thiel in the article.

"Thiel and Andreessen, leading proponents and financiers of the startup-city movement, are among those supportive of a Greenland outpost, two of the sources said," said Reuters.

However, the news site added that it "could not determine whether the two billionaires are actively lobbying the Trump administration for a Greenland city".

Trump's administration has made other overtures towards architecture and urban design through an executive order limiting federal architecture to classical and traditional styles.

Photography via Wikipedia Commons. 

The post American investors suggest building "freedom city" tech hub in Greenland appeared first on Dezeen.