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Uber unveils plans for plush new San Francisco headquarters

Uber has unveiled plans for an all-new and very flash corporate headquarters in the Mission Bay area of San Francisco.

Befitting of a company apparently worth a colossal $50 billion, the proposed structure is a grand, futuristic-looking affair, with an abundance of floor-to-ceiling windows and large gathering spaces serving to create a light and airy atmosphere for around 3,000 Uber employees.

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The ride-hailing company, which launched in 2009 and now operates in more than 200 cities across 55 countries, revealed plans for the plush new office space this week. The two-building complex, which’ll be linked by three glass walkways, should be open for business by early 2018.

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Comprising 423,000 square feet of office and retail space, the eye-catching space will be 11 stories at its highest point. The design is the work of New York-based Shop Architects, whose work also includes an extension to Google’s Mountain View “Googleplex” HQ in Mountain View.

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Uber’s new workspace will help bring its office-based team closer together, as they’re currently spread around several locations throughout the Californian city.

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The company follows in the footsteps of a bunch of other tech firms with stunning design plans for head offices. Apple, for one, is making steady progress with its so-called “spaceship” campus, while Google is hoping to move ahead with a dazzling design for a brand new complex featuring sweeping curved roofs, enormous glass walls, and landscaping features that “aim to blur the distinction between our buildings and nature,” according to David Radcliffe, Google’s VP of real estate.

Facebook, meanwhile, has already moved into its spacious new Menlo Park campus, a location which features an expansive rooftop garden and possibly the world’s largest open-plan office.

Trevor Mogg
Contributing Editor
Not so many moons ago, Trevor moved from one tea-loving island nation that drives on the left (Britain) to another (Japan)…
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