Drawing from the work of Baron Haussmann, who was responsible for the urban transformation of Paris between 1853 and 1870, architectural firm Vincent Callebaut Architectures presents a series of futuristic, biologically inspired architectures for the French capital. The architects harness the power of new artificial intelligence tools to create a collection of green ‘Haussmannian’ buildings and biomimetic positive-energy structures called ‘Archibiotics’. The resulting units are built from biobased materials (such as rammed earth, bamboo, microalgae, mycelium, etc.) and are designed to produce their own energy and convert their own waste into resources in order to achieve the national goal of carbon neutrality in 2050.
Georges-Eugène Haussmann, also known as Baron Haussmann, was Prefect of the Seine from 1853 to 1870 and led the transformation of Paris during the Second Empire under the aegis of Napoleon III, by deepening the comprehensive renovation plan established by the Simeon Commission. Following the cholera epidemic of 1832, Haussmann’s transformations focused on health and aimed to facilitate the flow of population, goods, air, and water by launching a campaign called ‘Paris Embellished, Paris Enlarged, Paris Sanitized’. The ‘Haussmannian’ buildings erected along the wide avenues of Paris, are what gave the city the old, medieval face we know today.

Taking their cues from H...