Saudi Arabia's 170km 'science fiction city' reportedly axed and is being replaced with disturbing alternative
The $1 trillion project known as The Line was set to create an entire city across 170 km (106 miles) in Saudi Arabia.
Set along one straight line, it was purported that the city would stretch all the way from the Red Sea to the city of Tabuk.
The project by NEOM began back in 2016 and a major part of it is the construction of The Line, which promised to eventually house nine million residents when completed.
But back in 2024, the project was plagued with scandal after a documentary claimed that thousands of workers had reportedly died or gone missing during construction.
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At the time, the Saudi Arabian National Council for Occupational Safety and Health released a statement as per Newsweek, which read: “In reference to the misinformation circulating across various media platforms - particularly claims suggesting an increase in worker fatalities linked to working conditions in Saudi Arabia, accompanied by unfounded statistics lacking credible sources - the National Council for Occupational Safety and Health in Saudi Arabia unequivocally refutes these assertions.”
It continued: “The council affirms the work-related fatalities in Saudi Arabia is 1.12 per 100,000 workers. This figure positions Saudi Arabia among the lowest globally in terms of work-related fatalities.”
Now, the ‘science fiction city’ might never become a reality after it was reportedly axed and has instead been replaced with an alternative.
This comes after the Financial Times reported that the Saudi government is now considering transforming the would-be city into a haven for data centers.
Yep, that’s right, the structure could house AI facilities instead of people.
Many people have taken to social media to react to this news, with one user writing on Reddit: “I'm shocked, SHOCKED I TELL YA! Well... not that shocked.”
Another said: “So we replaced the greatest idea ever with an even greatester idea: putting a f**kton of computers that need to be cooled constantly in the middle of the desert.”
A third person commented: “It was never going to happen. It would have been the 8th tallest building in the world by roof height while also being 170km long. It would have been bigger than all skyscrapers ever built combined.”
And a fourth added: “This is a real lose for humanity it was going to show us a brave new sustainable future. Hopefully another petro state can show us the way.”
LADbible Group has previously contacted the Public Investment Fund, which manages the Vision 2030 projects, and NEOM for a comment.