A campaign · season two · presented by Build It Right

The City Works

Seven addresses in the American city, in one January day.

Imagined with AI

The brief

One brief, seven addresses

Sixty megawatts, on one city block or on one piece of the city's own leftover ground, built to stand a century, with a second use the neighborhood actually wants. Closed-loop water. Battery backup, no diesel yard. The warmth goes to the blocks around it.

The American Works answered one brief on open land. This campaign answers a harder one: the same machines and the same warmth, woven into a city that already exists. Seven addresses take seven kinds of ground a city already has: a block, a square, a viaduct nobody used, a river crossing, the ground under a station, one slender site in the skyline, and the tallest tower downtown, emptied. Each is seen twice: as it meets the street at its hour, and as the world it keeps inside. Every address is a proposal, drawn with AI. None is a planned project, and none is a real city.

First light, 7:10 AM. Without: A downtown corner at first light in winter: a long pale stone block with warm windows and a glowing glass ridge along its roof, one tall arched doorway lit gold at the corner, a tram and a few people on the snowy street.

Within: A courtyard garden under a ridge of glass inside a city block: citrus trees, a long steaming pool, people on the paths and balconies looking down, snow on the glass above.

01 · First light · 7:10 AM

The Block

One city block. One door.

Behind it, a garden in January.

Enter The Block

Morning, 9:40 AM. Without: A snowy downtown square on a bright winter morning, seen from above: the snow melted in one warm circle of pale paving with steaming fountains, market stalls and people, a glowing glass oculus at its centre, and a pale stone pavilion with a tall gold doorway at its edge.

Within: A bath hall under a shallow pale stone vault, lit by daylight through a round glass oculus with snow on it, with terraced warm pools, bathers, steam and ferns, and the hall of the machines glowing amber beyond a glass wall.

02 · Morning · 9:40 AM

The Square

A square where the snow never settles.

Beneath it, the warm baths.

Enter The Square

Noon, 12:15 PM. Without: A street in a brick industrial district at noon in winter: a railway viaduct whose arches are filled with pale stone and warm glass, a long glasshouse promenade green with trees running along its top, people on a wide stair, and a tall gold doorway under the nearest arch.

03 · Noon · 12:15 PM

The Viaduct

A mile of glass over the streets.

A garden walk, warm from end to end.

Enter The Viaduct

Long light, 4:20 PM. Without: A wide frozen river in late gold light, crossed by a bridge on slender pale piers that carries a long glass hall lit from within, skaters on the ice below, snow on the banks, the old city on both sides, and a tall gold doorway at the near end.

Within: Inside the glass bridge: a street of gardens and cafes under a long glass vault, birch and pine in planters, a glass panel in the floor showing the ice below, the snowy city through the glass on both sides.

04 · Long light · 4:20 PM

The Bridge

A bridge you cross in shirtsleeves, in January.

A street of gardens over the water.

Enter The Bridge

Dusk, 5:45 PM. Without: A train station at blue hour with snow falling: a long luminous vault of pale glass glowing over the platforms, trains sliding in, a pale stone front with a tall gold doorway, a snowy plaza full of people, and lit skyscrapers behind.

Within: A station concourse at night that is a winter garden under a glowing glass vault: trees and warm lamps between the platforms, travellers with suitcases, a train waiting, snow falling outside the glass end wall, and rows of the machines glowing amber behind a glass wall below.

05 · Dusk · 5:45 PM

The Station

Never dark. Never closed.

A winter garden over the platforms.

Enter The Station

After dark, 9:30 PM. Without: A snowy downtown at night seen from a rooftop: a slender tower of pale stone and glowing glass rising far above the older brick buildings around it, garden terraces cut into it with trees and lamps, steam from a pool at its top, and a tall gold doorway at the street.

Within: A rooftop at night: a long warm pool steaming under the stars with swimmers, pines and lanterns around it, and the whole lit city spread out below.

06 · After dark · 9:30 PM

The Tower

A tower of gardens, lit from within.

A warm pool above the city.

Enter The Tower

Midnight, 12:00 AM. Without: A snowy downtown at midnight seen across a frozen river: the tallest tower in the city, a black steel skyscraper, hollow from the ground to the crown, a vast lit void with terraces stepping up its inner walls and the lights of gliders inside, its top open to the stars, and a tall gold doorway on the plaza at its base.

Within: Inside the hollowed skyscraper, looking up from a garden terrace: a canyon of light a hundred floors high, terraces and hanging gardens on every wall, bridges across the void, gliders and small airships in the air, and the stars through the open crown far above.

07 · Midnight · 12:00 AM

The High-Rise

The tallest tower in town, with the sky inside.

A canyon of light, a hundred floors high.

Enter The High-Rise

First light7:10 AM

The Block

One city block. One door.

Behind it, a garden in January.

Enter the room Watch the film · 1:00

Morning9:40 AM

The Square

A square where the snow never settles.

Beneath it, the warm baths.

Enter the room Watch the film · 1:00

Noon12:15 PM

The Viaduct

A mile of glass over the streets.

A garden walk, warm from end to end.

Enter the room Watch the film · 1:00

Long light4:20 PM

The Bridge

A bridge you cross in shirtsleeves, in January.

A street of gardens over the water.

Enter the room Watch the film · 1:00

Dusk5:45 PM

The Station

Never dark. Never closed.

A winter garden over the platforms.

Enter the room Watch the film · 1:00

After dark9:30 PM

The Tower

A tower of gardens, lit from within.

A warm pool above the city.

Enter the room Watch the film · 1:00

Midnight12:00 AM

The High-Rise

The tallest tower in town, with the sky inside.

A canyon of light, a hundred floors high.

Enter the room Watch the film · 1:00

Imagined with AI Skip the walkSkip

Without

Seven addresses

One January day, first light to midnight. Reach for a door to see the address; press it to enter its room.

All seven, with their wall labels

A downtown corner at first light in winter: a long pale stone block with warm windows and a glowing glass ridge along its roof, one tall arched doorway lit gold at the corner, a tram and a few people on the snowy street.

One block. One door. 01 · 7:10 AMThe Block

A snowy downtown square on a bright winter morning, seen from above: the snow melted in one warm circle of pale paving with steaming fountains, market stalls and people, a glowing glass oculus at its centre, and a pale stone pavilion with a tall gold doorway at its edge.

Where the snow never settles. 02 · 9:40 AMThe Square

A street in a brick industrial district at noon in winter: a railway viaduct whose arches are filled with pale stone and warm glass, a long glasshouse promenade green with trees running along its top, people on a wide stair, and a tall gold doorway under the nearest arch.

A mile of glass. 03 · 12:15 PMThe Viaduct

A wide frozen river in late gold light, crossed by a bridge on slender pale piers that carries a long glass hall lit from within, skaters on the ice below, snow on the banks, the old city on both sides, and a tall gold doorway at the near end.

A bridge, in shirtsleeves. 04 · 4:20 PMThe Bridge

A train station at blue hour with snow falling: a long luminous vault of pale glass glowing over the platforms, trains sliding in, a pale stone front with a tall gold doorway, a snowy plaza full of people, and lit skyscrapers behind.

Never dark. Never closed. 05 · 5:45 PMThe Station

A snowy downtown at night seen from a rooftop: a slender tower of pale stone and glowing glass rising far above the older brick buildings around it, garden terraces cut into it with trees and lamps, steam from a pool at its top, and a tall gold doorway at the street.

A tower of gardens. 06 · 9:30 PMThe Tower

A snowy downtown at midnight seen across a frozen river: the tallest tower in the city, a black steel skyscraper, hollow from the ground to the crown, a vast lit void with terraces stepping up its inner walls and the lights of gliders inside, its top open to the stars, and a tall gold doorway on the plaza at its base.

The sky inside. 07 · 12:00 AMThe High-Rise

Imagined with AI · a proposal, not a planned project

The hour

Seven addresses, two lights

Each address at its own hour, and from the same spot in the other light. Take hold of the line and change the hour for all seven at once.

The Block, after dark: The same corner at night: every window of the block warm, the glass ridge lit gold, the arched doorway blazing light across the empty snowy crosswalk.

The Block, first light: A downtown corner at first light in winter: a long pale stone block with warm windows and a glowing glass ridge along its roof, one tall arched doorway lit gold at the corner, a tram and a few people on the snowy street.

01 · The Block

The Square, after dark: The same square at night: the warm circle lit by the glowing oculus and strings of lanterns, fountains steaming, people out in the cold, snow glowing on every roof.

The Square, morning: A snowy downtown square on a bright winter morning, seen from above: the snow melted in one warm circle of pale paving with steaming fountains, market stalls and people, a glowing glass oculus at its centre, and a pale stone pavilion with a tall gold doorway at its edge.

02 · The Square

The Viaduct, after dark: The same street at night: the mile of glass along the viaduct glowing warm gold over the city, the arches lit from within, snow under the streetlights.

The Viaduct, noon: A street in a brick industrial district at noon in winter: a railway viaduct whose arches are filled with pale stone and warm glass, a long glasshouse promenade green with trees running along its top, people on a wide stair, and a tall gold doorway under the nearest arch.

03 · The Viaduct

The Bridge, after dark: The same river at night: the glass street glowing warm gold across the dark water like a lantern, its light on the ice, the city's windows lit on both banks.

The Bridge, long light: A wide frozen river in late gold light, crossed by a bridge on slender pale piers that carries a long glass hall lit from within, skaters on the ice below, snow on the banks, the old city on both sides, and a tall gold doorway at the near end.

04 · The Bridge

The Station, first light: The same plaza and station at first light: rose-gold sun on the snow and the glass vault, a few early travellers, long blue shadows, steam rising from the trains.

The Station, dusk: A train station at blue hour with snow falling: a long luminous vault of pale glass glowing over the platforms, trains sliding in, a pale stone front with a tall gold doorway, a snowy plaza full of people, and lit skyscrapers behind.

05 · The Station

The Tower, first light: The same rooftop view at first light: rose-gold sun on the pale tower and its garden terraces, mist rising from the rooftop pool, snow on every roof.

The Tower, after dark: A snowy downtown at night seen from a rooftop: a slender tower of pale stone and glowing glass rising far above the older brick buildings around it, garden terraces cut into it with trees and lamps, steam from a pool at its top, and a tall gold doorway at the street.

06 · The Tower

The High-Rise, first light: The same river view at first light: rose-gold sun on the crown of the hollowed tower pouring down into the void, the terraces green, mist inside, snow on every roof.

The High-Rise, midnight: A snowy downtown at midnight seen across a frozen river: the tallest tower in the city, a black steel skyscraper, hollow from the ground to the crown, a vast lit void with terraces stepping up its inner walls and the lights of gliders inside, its top open to the stars, and a tall gold doorway on the plaza at its base.

07 · The High-Rise

Its hourThe other light

Imagined with AI · a proposal, not a planned projectThe same camera, twice: each address at its hour, and after dark or at first light.

Where it stands today

Four places where a piece of this already stands

The addresses are proposals. The warmth is not. In four real cities, warmth from machines or a power plant already goes to the people around them. Each sentence here says no more than its source does; the sources are on the receipts.

Holland, Michigan: Since 1988 the city has kept its downtown streets and sidewalks free of snow with water warmed by the waste heat of its public power plant: about 690,000 square feet of them today.
Paris: In 2017 the city installed servers whose recovered heat helped warm the indoor pool at the Butte-aux-Cailles, and put the saving at 45 tonnes of carbon dioxide a year.
Stockholm: Since 2014 the city’s district heating company has bought surplus heat from businesses, most of it from data centres: in 2022, enough to warm 30,000 modern apartments.
Tallaght, Dublin: Ireland’s first large-scale district heating network has run since 2023 on waste heat from a nearby data centre. It warms the county hall, the library, a university campus and 133 apartments.

Read in their sources on October 20, 2026. Every sentence, with its source.

Within

The films

One film of the whole day, and one of a minute for each address: the ground today, the gold wipe, the street alive, the door, the room inside alive, the street at human distance.

The screening room