A glimmer, by definition, is a faint, wavering, or unsteady light. In the case of the Saudi crown prince, it is the 3,280-foot structure, Jeddah Tower, a Saudi dream that is beginning to look real again. Originally known as Kingdom Tower, the skyscraper broke ground in 2013, but after years in limbo and being frozen at 63 floors, it has now climbed to 100 floors and more than 400 meters (1312 feet). It is only a matter of time, or floors, before the world’s tallest building is no longer the iconic Burj Khalifa in Dubai, but Jeddah Tower with around 167 floors.
Compared with Burj Khalifa, which stands 828 meters tall (2716 feet) with 163 floors, this 1-kilometer-tall building sits in the very heart of Jeddah Economic City, a 5.3-million-square-meter development along the coast of the Red Sea, situated 20 kilometers north of central Jeddah. Construction on Jeddah Tower officially restarted in January 2025; and according to Dezeen, the humongous skyscraper will house apartments, offices, and a Four Seasons hotel. No fewer than 56 lifts will help people move through the tower at a lightning-fast speed of 12 meters per second.
Kingdom Holding’s construction announcement revealed that 63 floors were completed out of a total of around 167, which means they are well past the halfway mark by floor count, even if the tower still has more than 600 meters to climb before reaching its record-breaking height. This time, the future with a 2028 deadline does not feel so distant. One of the tower’s most dramatic features will be a 30-meter-wide cantilevered balcony or sky terrace, expected to project from one of the penthouses at around 600 meters, giving the building a viewing platform almost suspended in the sky.
With its tapered, three-pronged form designed by Adrian Smith + Gordon Gill Architecture, the building’s silhouette is inspired by the resilient growth of desert plants and folded palm fronds. More than just a building, it has become a symbol of a “never-say-die” spirit. Despite financial strains, a global pandemic, and staggering technical hurdles, Jeddah Tower has returned as a beacon of momentum in a Kingdom where other high-profile contracts, from Neom’s Trojena to The Line, have faced recent uncertainty. Jeddah Tower isn’t just rising; it’s reclaiming the sky.
