The world’s most celebrated technology headquarters tend to share one instinct: to turn inward. They perfect a self-contained world for their employees, while the public stays at the gate.

Tencent’s new headquarters takes the opposite approach. Designed by MAD, led by Ma Yansong, Dang Qun, and Yosuke Hayano, Tengyun Center lifts its entire main mass roughly 8.6 meters into the air and gives the ground beneath it back to the city. There are no walls. The land under the building is open to anyone: a coastal public space that pedestrians, families, and passers-by can move through without ever entering the company.

Completed in Shenzhen’s Da Chan Bay and now open as part of Tencent’s broader campus, the project reframes one of the most guarded building types in the world, the corporate headquarters, as a piece of public infrastructure.

“𝘍𝘭𝘰𝘢𝘵𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘪𝘴 𝘯𝘰𝘵 𝘢 𝘷𝘪𝘴𝘶𝘢𝘭 𝘦𝘧𝘧𝘦𝘤𝘵, 𝘪𝘵’𝘴 𝘢 𝘴𝘱𝘢𝘵𝘪𝘢𝘭 𝘪𝘥𝘦𝘢. 𝘉𝘺 𝘭𝘪𝘧𝘵𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘩𝘦𝘢𝘥𝘲𝘶𝘢𝘳𝘵𝘦𝘳𝘴, 𝘸𝘦 𝘨𝘪𝘷𝘦 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘨𝘳𝘰𝘶𝘯𝘥 𝘣𝘢𝘤𝘬 𝘵𝘰 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘤𝘪𝘵𝘺. 𝘐𝘵’𝘴 𝘯𝘰𝘵 𝘢𝘣𝘰𝘶𝘵 𝘮𝘢𝘬𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘢 𝘤𝘭𝘰𝘴𝘦𝘥-𝘰𝘧𝘧 𝘤𝘰𝘳𝘱𝘰𝘳𝘢𝘵𝘦 𝘪𝘤𝘰𝘯, 𝘣𝘶𝘵 𝘢𝘣𝘰𝘶𝘵 𝘭𝘦𝘵𝘵𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘣𝘶𝘪𝘭𝘥𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘣𝘦𝘤𝘰𝘮𝘦 𝘱𝘢𝘳𝘵 𝘰𝘧 𝘦𝘷𝘦𝘳𝘺𝘥𝘢𝘺 𝘶𝘳𝘣𝘢𝘯 𝘭𝘪𝘧𝘦. 𝘐𝘯 𝘵𝘩𝘪𝘴 𝘴𝘦𝘯𝘴𝘦, ‘𝘧𝘭𝘰𝘢𝘵𝘪𝘯𝘨’ 𝘪𝘴 𝘴𝘪𝘮𝘱𝘭𝘺 𝘢 𝘸𝘢𝘺 𝘵𝘰 𝘮𝘢𝘬𝘦 𝘱𝘶𝘣𝘭𝘪𝘤 𝘴𝘱𝘢𝘤𝘦 𝘮𝘰𝘳𝘦 𝘰𝘱𝘦𝘯 𝘢𝘯𝘥 𝘢𝘤𝘤𝘦𝘴𝘴𝘪𝘣𝘭𝘦.”

— Ma Yansong, Founder and Principal Partner, MAD