SOM designs stepped glazed towers for Kazakhstan's new city

Mar 16, 2026

Global architecture studio SOM has designed a pair of stepped, wedge-shaped towers to be a landmark for the new city of Alatau in south-eastern Kazakhstan.

Planned just outside the city of Almaty, the Alatau Iconic Complex and Gateway District will comprise a 272-metre-tall skyscraper accommodating offices and residential space, along with an 80-metre-tall luxury hotel.

Once complete, the skyscraper will be the tallest structure in the region.

SOM was commissioned to create an "economic and administrative nucleus" for the emerging Alatau city, which, once complete, will span 88,000 hectares across four districts and serve as an "international hub" for Central Asia.

The studio drew on the nearby Trans-Ili Alatau mountain range for the towers' stepped forms, which will be lined at each level with external terraces.

Renders of the 276,800-square-metre proposal reveal the towers' largely glazed exteriors punctured with large central atria designed to draw light into the interiors.

"Inspired by the surrounding Trans-Ili Alatau – a 350-kilometre range of valleys, glaciers, and stratified terrain – the design translates these local natural formations into architecture, creating a unique identity rooted in the Kazakh landscape," the studio said.

"Both buildings feature high-performance facades and integrated shading strategies to reduce solar gain, while central atria draw natural light deep into the floorplates and frame panoramic views of the surrounding mountains," it added.