Dubai's Grand, 3D-Printed Vision

By 2025, city-state Dubai mandates that one quarter of each new building constructed must be 3D printed, according to the World Economic Forum.

The mandate is part of Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum, vice-president and prime minister of the United Arab Emirates and ruler of Dubai's overarching 3D-printing plan that was first announced in 2016. The Dubai Future Foundation says the plan may reduce building costs by as much as 90 percent, and human labor needs by 70 percent. Fast Company notes that the UAE has come under scrutiny by advocacy groups that accuse the city-state of "widespread human rights abuses and practical slavery as the norm in the [local construction] industry."

“In 2025, based on Dubai Municipality’s regulations, every new building in Dubai will be 25 percent 3D printed,” the Foundation explains. “This move will start from 2019, starting at 2 percent with a gradual increase to the strategic goal.” The initiative will focus on the construction industry’s printing of “lighting products, bases, and foundations, construction joints, facilities, and parks, buildings for humanitarian causes, and mobile homes.”

Read more