The Property Issue

"Who owns the land?" is a central question because space is a resource as vital as air and water. Today, however, data ownership has become just as relevant as the question of land ownership in the context of urban planning. Technology companies are entering the field of architecture with algorithm-driven planning methods and massive investments in infrastructures and smart cities. In their technocratic vision, citizens become users, architecture becomes an instrument of statistics, and concepts such as the city and society become mere "algorithmic assemblages." This issue, co-edited by ARCH+, Arno Brandlhuber, and Olaf Grawert of station+/ETH Zurich, discusses the politics of space and data; the real and virtual assets of the city of the future.