1 00:00:04,160 --> 00:00:06,880 Speaker 1: Hey, and welcome to the short Stuff Josh Chuck, Jerry 2 00:00:07,240 --> 00:00:08,920 Speaker 1: Dave and Spirit short Stuff. 3 00:00:10,080 --> 00:00:13,000 Speaker 2: That's right, that's my cue. This is about the Jetta 4 00:00:13,039 --> 00:00:17,440 Speaker 2: Tower j E. D. D Ah thanks to Architectural Digest 5 00:00:17,560 --> 00:00:20,000 Speaker 2: and CNN and how stuff works for this stuff. 6 00:00:20,720 --> 00:00:22,480 Speaker 3: But this is the story. 7 00:00:22,160 --> 00:00:26,799 Speaker 2: Of if it's finished eventually will be at least for 8 00:00:26,800 --> 00:00:28,600 Speaker 2: a while, the tallest building in the world. 9 00:00:29,560 --> 00:00:32,880 Speaker 1: Yeah, it's gonna make the Bird Khalifa look like poop. 10 00:00:35,640 --> 00:00:37,120 Speaker 3: So let's go back to two thousand and eight. 11 00:00:37,320 --> 00:00:41,240 Speaker 2: There's a billionaire investor named Prince Alowed Ben Tallal of 12 00:00:41,280 --> 00:00:44,800 Speaker 2: Saudi Arabia, and I think his goal. 13 00:00:44,640 --> 00:00:46,400 Speaker 3: Was to make the Bird Khalifa look like poop. He 14 00:00:46,440 --> 00:00:47,600 Speaker 3: was like, I want to make one taller. 15 00:00:48,479 --> 00:00:51,080 Speaker 2: I want to build a city and around it called 16 00:00:51,080 --> 00:00:57,040 Speaker 2: the Jetta Economic City. Terrible name, and basically like they 17 00:00:57,040 --> 00:01:00,600 Speaker 2: wanted to compete with Dubai, but in Saudi Arabia, right. 18 00:01:01,000 --> 00:01:04,640 Speaker 1: Because Dubai is in the UAE. And he wanted to 19 00:01:04,640 --> 00:01:07,800 Speaker 1: build the first skyscraper to reach over thirty two hundred 20 00:01:07,840 --> 00:01:10,800 Speaker 1: and eighty feet or higher. And for those of us 21 00:01:10,840 --> 00:01:14,280 Speaker 1: in the United States and for our friends in Liberia, 22 00:01:15,040 --> 00:01:17,600 Speaker 1: that is a kilometer. So this would be the first 23 00:01:17,880 --> 00:01:23,399 Speaker 1: kilometer high building, which is mind bogglingly tall, and he's 24 00:01:23,440 --> 00:01:26,880 Speaker 1: doing it baby in two thousand. Well, I guess they 25 00:01:26,880 --> 00:01:28,800 Speaker 1: made it up to twenty eighteen. 26 00:01:29,720 --> 00:01:33,880 Speaker 3: Before oh no, year. I was thinking feet. 27 00:01:33,920 --> 00:01:37,920 Speaker 1: Right, No, no, the year. Yeah, that was a little confusing. 28 00:01:37,959 --> 00:01:40,160 Speaker 1: I'm sorry about that. That's right, especially when you know 29 00:01:40,520 --> 00:01:43,880 Speaker 1: the construction history of the tower. But no, they made 30 00:01:43,920 --> 00:01:47,280 Speaker 1: it up to twenty eighteen the year. See, I guess 31 00:01:47,319 --> 00:01:51,160 Speaker 1: I should have said before they had to halt construction 32 00:01:51,240 --> 00:01:52,840 Speaker 1: thanks to a bunch of different stuff. 33 00:01:53,120 --> 00:01:55,480 Speaker 2: That's right, you know, it's the way he said it 34 00:01:55,480 --> 00:01:57,160 Speaker 2: when you said they went all the way up to 35 00:01:57,600 --> 00:01:59,279 Speaker 2: twenty eighteen. 36 00:02:00,200 --> 00:02:03,360 Speaker 1: Brick by brick, all the way to twenty eighteen, big year. 37 00:02:04,320 --> 00:02:07,560 Speaker 2: So yeah, construction pause in twenty eighteen. We'll talk about 38 00:02:07,600 --> 00:02:10,320 Speaker 2: why here in a minute. And also, COVID had a 39 00:02:10,320 --> 00:02:13,440 Speaker 2: big dent in it. The bird Khalifa is the current 40 00:02:13,480 --> 00:02:17,000 Speaker 2: tallest building, at twenty seven seventeen feet. 41 00:02:16,760 --> 00:02:20,160 Speaker 3: Tall the year oh no. 42 00:02:21,320 --> 00:02:23,799 Speaker 2: If you're wondering about the eventual kilometer high building, the 43 00:02:23,840 --> 00:02:26,960 Speaker 2: Jetta Tower, if you remember our beloved twin towers here 44 00:02:27,000 --> 00:02:29,240 Speaker 2: in the United States, it'll be about twice the size 45 00:02:29,240 --> 00:02:32,040 Speaker 2: of those which is astonishing to think about. 46 00:02:32,600 --> 00:02:35,320 Speaker 1: Also, I mean, for a little closer to home, if 47 00:02:35,320 --> 00:02:37,400 Speaker 1: you don't live in New York, the average two story 48 00:02:37,440 --> 00:02:39,760 Speaker 1: houses about twenty to twenty five feet. 49 00:02:39,639 --> 00:02:42,799 Speaker 3: Right for comparison, how many big macs. 50 00:02:43,000 --> 00:02:44,720 Speaker 1: I looked and I was like, I'm not doing this. 51 00:02:44,919 --> 00:02:45,639 Speaker 3: Yeah, that's over. 52 00:02:46,800 --> 00:02:50,560 Speaker 2: It was designed both Birge Khalifa and the Jetta Tower 53 00:02:50,560 --> 00:02:52,920 Speaker 2: by an American architect named Adrian Smith. 54 00:02:53,440 --> 00:02:55,400 Speaker 3: Did not know that, Yeah, and they're both. 55 00:02:56,440 --> 00:02:59,000 Speaker 2: You know, it's not a copycat of the Bird Khalifa, 56 00:02:59,080 --> 00:03:03,200 Speaker 2: but it's definitely some in structure because what Adrian Smith 57 00:03:03,320 --> 00:03:07,480 Speaker 2: reckoned and figured out was that making a building that 58 00:03:07,639 --> 00:03:10,880 Speaker 2: tall as a triangle, as a y shape instead of 59 00:03:11,040 --> 00:03:16,040 Speaker 2: a square, instead of a box or a rectangle is 60 00:03:16,120 --> 00:03:18,799 Speaker 2: a lot safer for like, you know, he did wind 61 00:03:18,800 --> 00:03:21,600 Speaker 2: tunnel testing and stuff like that. It's like, this thing 62 00:03:21,680 --> 00:03:23,959 Speaker 2: is gonna meet the wind in a safer way. 63 00:03:24,440 --> 00:03:26,720 Speaker 1: Yeah, it gets awfully windy the higher up you go. 64 00:03:27,000 --> 00:03:29,359 Speaker 1: And if you want to, if you're like wind cheer 65 00:03:29,360 --> 00:03:32,880 Speaker 1: in buildings, that sounds interesting. I could not recommend more. 66 00:03:33,000 --> 00:03:35,760 Speaker 1: A nineteen ninety five New Yorker article called the fifty 67 00:03:35,880 --> 00:03:39,040 Speaker 1: nine Story Crisis about when the city Bank. I've talked 68 00:03:39,080 --> 00:03:41,080 Speaker 1: about it before. I don't know when, but when the 69 00:03:41,120 --> 00:03:45,720 Speaker 1: City Bank building in the seventies was built and occupied 70 00:03:46,160 --> 00:03:49,120 Speaker 1: and the engineer architect figured out like, oh god, like 71 00:03:49,200 --> 00:03:50,280 Speaker 1: basically I forgot. 72 00:03:50,040 --> 00:03:51,880 Speaker 3: To carry the one get everyone out of there. 73 00:03:52,600 --> 00:03:54,960 Speaker 1: They had to figure out how to shore it up 74 00:03:55,560 --> 00:03:59,000 Speaker 1: for a hurricane hit. Oh that was like on its way. Basically. 75 00:03:59,840 --> 00:04:02,080 Speaker 1: It's a really really great article. 76 00:04:02,760 --> 00:04:04,400 Speaker 2: I guess at the time they would have brought in 77 00:04:04,440 --> 00:04:05,960 Speaker 2: Bruce Willis to solve that problem. 78 00:04:06,320 --> 00:04:07,000 Speaker 1: That's right. 79 00:04:07,440 --> 00:04:09,720 Speaker 3: Yeah, man, I got to read that. That sounds great. 80 00:04:09,760 --> 00:04:13,400 Speaker 1: It is so greatly suspenseful. It's just a wonderful article, 81 00:04:13,440 --> 00:04:14,320 Speaker 1: one of the best ever. 82 00:04:14,640 --> 00:04:16,839 Speaker 3: Awesome. So the Birds Khalifa. 83 00:04:17,240 --> 00:04:19,679 Speaker 2: One of the differences is that one tapers in different 84 00:04:19,760 --> 00:04:21,279 Speaker 2: stages at different sections. 85 00:04:21,760 --> 00:04:24,840 Speaker 3: But the Jetta tower is sort of one big triangle. 86 00:04:24,880 --> 00:04:29,320 Speaker 2: It's going to be one continuously tapering tower and literally 87 00:04:29,480 --> 00:04:31,440 Speaker 2: sort of piercing the clouds at one point. 88 00:04:31,960 --> 00:04:34,560 Speaker 1: Yeah. I saw that Adrian Smith was inspired by how 89 00:04:34,720 --> 00:04:37,479 Speaker 1: palm leaves stick up from the top of a tree 90 00:04:37,520 --> 00:04:41,000 Speaker 1: before they unfurl cool and bend over. And I looked 91 00:04:41,000 --> 00:04:42,800 Speaker 1: at a picture. I'm like, yep, that looks like the 92 00:04:42,839 --> 00:04:43,480 Speaker 1: Jetta tower. 93 00:04:43,839 --> 00:04:44,760 Speaker 3: Yeah, awesome. 94 00:04:45,920 --> 00:04:48,200 Speaker 1: So you want to take a little break and come 95 00:04:48,240 --> 00:04:50,520 Speaker 1: back and talk about I don't know, the Jetta Tower 96 00:04:50,560 --> 00:04:50,920 Speaker 1: some more. 97 00:04:51,040 --> 00:05:06,919 Speaker 4: Yeah, let's do it. 98 00:05:12,320 --> 00:05:14,560 Speaker 2: So we're gonna just give you a few nuts and 99 00:05:14,600 --> 00:05:19,359 Speaker 2: bolts appropriately about the Jetta Tower. The big showstopper there 100 00:05:20,120 --> 00:05:23,800 Speaker 2: will be the observation tower, open air observation tower, which 101 00:05:23,800 --> 00:05:28,760 Speaker 2: is terrifying. It'll be a two eighty seven feet They 102 00:05:28,800 --> 00:05:31,400 Speaker 2: were gonna have a helipad on it, or it was 103 00:05:31,440 --> 00:05:35,000 Speaker 2: supposedly supposed to be a helipad, I think, and architects 104 00:05:35,040 --> 00:05:38,200 Speaker 2: were like, he can't out here with you can't land 105 00:05:38,200 --> 00:05:40,360 Speaker 2: a helicopter. It's on something that high out here. That's 106 00:05:40,360 --> 00:05:41,000 Speaker 2: not a good idea. 107 00:05:41,440 --> 00:05:43,440 Speaker 1: So like, we'll make it an observation deck. We'll just 108 00:05:43,440 --> 00:05:45,960 Speaker 1: tell everybody to ignore the giant h in the circle 109 00:05:46,000 --> 00:05:46,479 Speaker 1: on the deck. 110 00:05:46,560 --> 00:05:48,160 Speaker 3: Yeah, exactly, stand in the center of that. 111 00:05:49,560 --> 00:05:52,520 Speaker 1: So yeah, I mean, I don't like heights, but I 112 00:05:52,520 --> 00:05:54,960 Speaker 1: would check that out if I ever found myself in Jeta. 113 00:05:56,680 --> 00:05:57,400 Speaker 3: Yeah. Maybe. 114 00:05:58,760 --> 00:06:01,960 Speaker 1: By the way, Jeda is actually already a town there 115 00:06:02,000 --> 00:06:05,120 Speaker 1: on the Red Sea. There was a guy who was 116 00:06:05,160 --> 00:06:09,520 Speaker 1: interviewed in this house stuff works article maybe Architectural Digest, 117 00:06:10,080 --> 00:06:11,920 Speaker 1: where he said like, this is not a place where 118 00:06:12,000 --> 00:06:15,120 Speaker 1: you would normally live, which I think is kind of 119 00:06:15,200 --> 00:06:17,839 Speaker 1: mean to people who live in Jedda, But I get 120 00:06:17,839 --> 00:06:21,560 Speaker 1: his point. It's not like Jeda economic city. But it's 121 00:06:21,600 --> 00:06:24,320 Speaker 1: claimed to fame, as far as I know, is that 122 00:06:24,440 --> 00:06:28,000 Speaker 1: it is the tomb. It holds the tomb of Eve, 123 00:06:28,800 --> 00:06:32,640 Speaker 1: Eve of Garden of Eden fame. And they think that yes, 124 00:06:32,760 --> 00:06:37,000 Speaker 1: and they think that Jeta is the is a derivation 125 00:06:37,120 --> 00:06:42,479 Speaker 1: of Jada, which means grandmother. Okay, that's some Raiders of 126 00:06:42,520 --> 00:06:44,039 Speaker 1: the Lost Ark stuff right there. 127 00:06:44,160 --> 00:06:48,359 Speaker 3: Wow, all right, my mind is kind of blown. 128 00:06:48,920 --> 00:06:50,960 Speaker 1: Yeah, it blew mine too, and I just could not 129 00:06:51,080 --> 00:06:51,520 Speaker 1: share it. 130 00:06:51,600 --> 00:06:53,640 Speaker 3: All right, this might blow your mind too. 131 00:06:53,680 --> 00:06:56,560 Speaker 2: The Jeda Tower, at least according to its original plans, 132 00:06:56,600 --> 00:06:59,280 Speaker 2: who knows what's going to end up happening. We'll have 133 00:06:59,320 --> 00:07:03,719 Speaker 2: about eighty t eighty thousand tons of steel, fifty nine 134 00:07:03,800 --> 00:07:08,159 Speaker 2: ultra high speed elevators, eight escalators, seven double decker elevators. 135 00:07:09,000 --> 00:07:11,400 Speaker 2: I think if you're going up to that observatory in terrace, 136 00:07:11,440 --> 00:07:13,680 Speaker 2: you're going to go at about thirty two feet per second, 137 00:07:14,360 --> 00:07:16,800 Speaker 2: which is pretty fast. And it's the mixed use space. 138 00:07:16,840 --> 00:07:19,280 Speaker 2: It's gonna the bottom third is going to be office space. 139 00:07:19,960 --> 00:07:22,880 Speaker 2: It's gonna be a luxury hotel, and then the one 140 00:07:22,960 --> 00:07:26,280 Speaker 2: hundred and sixty seven highest floors, which sounds crazy to say, 141 00:07:26,960 --> 00:07:31,360 Speaker 2: will be apartments. And of course I'm sure some very 142 00:07:31,480 --> 00:07:35,280 Speaker 2: rich sheeic or somebody will own that penthouse at the 143 00:07:35,360 --> 00:07:36,320 Speaker 2: crown of the whole thing. 144 00:07:37,080 --> 00:07:39,880 Speaker 1: Yeah. I found some pictures, some renderings of it, and 145 00:07:39,920 --> 00:07:42,239 Speaker 1: I'm like, meh, I mean, you could find the exact 146 00:07:42,280 --> 00:07:45,800 Speaker 1: same thing in Miami or Rio or it just looks 147 00:07:45,880 --> 00:07:48,800 Speaker 1: like whatever. It's Yeah, you know, I mean, the tower 148 00:07:48,800 --> 00:07:51,680 Speaker 1: itself is going to be amazing, but yeah, the it's just, 149 00:07:51,880 --> 00:07:53,680 Speaker 1: you know, when you have that much space and that 150 00:07:53,760 --> 00:07:56,080 Speaker 1: much wealth, there's only so much you can do. 151 00:07:56,640 --> 00:07:57,520 Speaker 3: Yeah, agreed. 152 00:07:58,160 --> 00:08:00,240 Speaker 2: The original name was a Kingdom Tower, and they broke 153 00:08:00,280 --> 00:08:03,160 Speaker 2: ground in April of twenty thirteen. It took more than 154 00:08:03,200 --> 00:08:06,760 Speaker 2: a year just to lay the foundation, and they have 155 00:08:06,920 --> 00:08:10,400 Speaker 2: these concrete pilings ten feet in diameter, longer than a 156 00:08:10,400 --> 00:08:13,000 Speaker 2: football field, that go down very very very deep into 157 00:08:13,000 --> 00:08:15,880 Speaker 2: the earth. And because of these delays, you know, they 158 00:08:15,920 --> 00:08:18,800 Speaker 2: had to stop in twenty seventeen when there was a 159 00:08:18,840 --> 00:08:21,480 Speaker 2: political crisis in Saudi Arabia that was a move to 160 00:08:22,040 --> 00:08:25,560 Speaker 2: sort of consolidate power and Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman 161 00:08:26,680 --> 00:08:30,200 Speaker 2: had a big anti corruption purge where he arrested eleven 162 00:08:30,240 --> 00:08:33,480 Speaker 2: Saudi princes, one of which was the financial backer of 163 00:08:33,480 --> 00:08:36,360 Speaker 2: the Jetta Tower and some of the partners in the 164 00:08:36,360 --> 00:08:38,959 Speaker 2: Saudi bin Laden group. So because of that and COVID, 165 00:08:39,440 --> 00:08:41,480 Speaker 2: it halted for a lot of years, and I think 166 00:08:41,520 --> 00:08:44,120 Speaker 2: like five years. And I was watching this YouTube video 167 00:08:44,160 --> 00:08:46,840 Speaker 2: where they basically said, like, when that happens in a 168 00:08:46,880 --> 00:08:49,840 Speaker 2: place like this, like you usually tear it down and 169 00:08:49,880 --> 00:08:54,080 Speaker 2: start over, because you know, sand damage, salt damage, just 170 00:08:54,160 --> 00:08:58,360 Speaker 2: corrosion to steal and corrosion to the concrete probably makes 171 00:08:58,400 --> 00:09:02,560 Speaker 2: it very unsafe move forward. But apparently they had the 172 00:09:02,600 --> 00:09:06,840 Speaker 2: foresight to install these underground sensors in those pilings and 173 00:09:06,880 --> 00:09:10,240 Speaker 2: they could get readings that apparently said like we're all 174 00:09:10,280 --> 00:09:10,960 Speaker 2: good down here. 175 00:09:11,720 --> 00:09:15,920 Speaker 1: Yeah, that's amazing. That is some foresight. You were telling 176 00:09:15,960 --> 00:09:17,520 Speaker 1: me about that, and you hadn't got to the part 177 00:09:17,559 --> 00:09:19,280 Speaker 1: where they had the sensors, And I was like, please 178 00:09:19,320 --> 00:09:22,080 Speaker 1: tell me that they are not just building on top 179 00:09:22,120 --> 00:09:24,040 Speaker 1: of an unsafe structure or they're going to have to 180 00:09:24,040 --> 00:09:26,720 Speaker 1: tear the whole thing down and start over. But nope, 181 00:09:26,760 --> 00:09:29,240 Speaker 1: you really came through with the great positive twist at 182 00:09:29,240 --> 00:09:29,559 Speaker 1: the end. 183 00:09:29,920 --> 00:09:30,160 Speaker 3: Yeah. 184 00:09:30,240 --> 00:09:34,280 Speaker 2: Well, they eventually restarted after COVID. I think in twenty 185 00:09:34,840 --> 00:09:37,640 Speaker 2: twenty three. Of September twenty twenty three is when they 186 00:09:37,679 --> 00:09:42,520 Speaker 2: finally restarted. They said in twenty twenty three it would 187 00:09:42,520 --> 00:09:46,560 Speaker 2: be another four or five years, But in twenty twenty five, 188 00:09:46,880 --> 00:09:49,360 Speaker 2: just over a year ago, sixty of the one hundred 189 00:09:49,360 --> 00:09:52,400 Speaker 2: and sixty seven floors have been built, and this year 190 00:09:52,400 --> 00:09:55,920 Speaker 2: in January they passed just recently the eighty floor mark. 191 00:09:56,800 --> 00:10:00,640 Speaker 1: Yeah, so they're almost halfway there. There was they're thinking 192 00:10:00,679 --> 00:10:03,320 Speaker 1: that they might be done in the next couple of years. 193 00:10:03,600 --> 00:10:05,640 Speaker 2: Yeah. I don't know, but I mean I did. The 194 00:10:05,679 --> 00:10:07,760 Speaker 2: YouTube video also said that they are going at like 195 00:10:07,920 --> 00:10:08,800 Speaker 2: breakneck pace. 196 00:10:08,880 --> 00:10:11,600 Speaker 1: Now, yeah, that's you don't really want to do that 197 00:10:11,640 --> 00:10:13,440 Speaker 1: when you're building the world's tallest building. 198 00:10:13,480 --> 00:10:14,880 Speaker 3: But no, I agree. 199 00:10:16,520 --> 00:10:20,000 Speaker 1: Also a little fact, if you're like Prince Muhammed ben Solomon, 200 00:10:20,080 --> 00:10:22,800 Speaker 1: he sounds kind of familiar. Yeah. When he did that 201 00:10:23,720 --> 00:10:27,800 Speaker 1: anti corruption purgo's the same time that he ordered Jamal Kashogi, 202 00:10:27,920 --> 00:10:30,319 Speaker 1: the coltunist and dissident murdered. 203 00:10:30,679 --> 00:10:33,280 Speaker 3: That's right, Yet he was still welcomed into our White House. 204 00:10:34,600 --> 00:10:36,760 Speaker 1: Wow, so you got anything else. 205 00:10:37,120 --> 00:10:39,520 Speaker 2: I have nothing else. We'll see what happens with the 206 00:10:39,559 --> 00:10:42,000 Speaker 2: Jetta Tower. I mean, it looks like it'll be finished, 207 00:10:43,040 --> 00:10:44,800 Speaker 2: you know. I don't know about four or five years 208 00:10:44,800 --> 00:10:46,800 Speaker 2: from twenty twenty three, but we'll see. 209 00:10:47,320 --> 00:10:50,320 Speaker 1: Yeah. And sorry to all the people who saw this 210 00:10:50,800 --> 00:10:53,240 Speaker 1: short stuff title Jetta Tower and were like they better 211 00:10:53,240 --> 00:10:58,199 Speaker 1: not bring the White House into this short stuff is out. 212 00:11:00,160 --> 00:11:03,760 Speaker 2: Follow Stuff You Should Know is a production of iHeartRadio. 213 00:11:04,240 --> 00:11:07,440 Speaker 2: For more podcasts my heart Radio, visit the iHeartRadio app, 214 00:11:07,640 --> 00:11:10,559 Speaker 2: Apple Podcasts, or wherever you listen to your favorite shows.