7 global Google offices with striking designs and sustainable innovations

Designed by Bjarke Ingels Group (BIG) and Heatherwick Studios, the newest addition to Google’s Mountain View campus in Silicon Valley, California, represents a groundbreaking approach to sustainable workplace design. 

Part of the monumental Googleplex that sprawls across 1.1 million sq ft, the complex comprises three buildings equipped with a “dragon scale” solar skin roof made up of 50,000 solar panels that generate nearly seven megawatts of energy.

The innovative canopy structure also maximises natural light and views into the flexible open-plan interior with column-free workspaces that encourages collaboration.

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Besides that, the campus also incorporates North America’s largest geothermal pile system, significantly reducing carbon emissions and water usage. 

Already on track to achieve LEED-NC v4 Platinum certification and the largest project with an International Living Future Institute (ILFI)’s Living Building Challenge (LBC) Water Petal Certification, these cutting-edge sustainability features aim to enable  24/7 carbon-free energy operation by 2030.

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Originally built in 1943 by Howard Hughes for the construction of the HK-1 Hercules Flying Boat, nicknamed Spruce Goose, ZGF Architects transformed the 230-metre-long timber-framed hangar into a modern workspace for Google’s Playa Vista office.

The Los Angeles office underwent extensive restoration in an effort to preserve its rich aviation history–a remediation of the entire building through deconstruction, treatment, and replacements of woodwork, as well as the significant feat of removing harmful chemicals from the corrugated steel exterior and putting it back into place.

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Nestled inside the hangar’s enormous wooden exoskeleton that resembles an upside-down ship’s hull, the four-level “building-within-a-building” design features a ramped boardwalk from the ground floor, with pathways through the central spine dividing the hangar lengthways.

Airborne-themed meeting rooms and phone booths complement other employee amenities, showcasing a subdued colour palette with bespoke furnishings and vibrant art installations.

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Occupying several floors in the Roppongi Hills Tower, Google’s office in Tokyo fuses the tech giant’s corporate identity with rich elements of Japanese culture and history.

Designed by Tokyo practice Klein Dytham Architecture (KDa), the workspace features distinct themed zones in Google’s logo colours, enhancing wayfinding while evading monotony across the expansive spaces.

The office incorporates perforated concrete-block walls reminiscent of Tokyo’s residential alleyways, housing workspaces and informal meeting areas designed as “pocket parks.”

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Cultural nods that celebrate its local context abound, including traditional bathhouse-inspired spaces with a Mount Fuji mural, a digital movement-responsive koi pond, and a full-scale yatai (food stall).

These local design elements blend with eccentricity in the Google office space: the vibrant Big Blue kitchen features car wash brushes on the wall, while playful wallpapers draw inspiration from yukata robes and happi coats, subtly integrating Google’s browser icon and bugdroid mascot into their designs.

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Part of the Porta Nuova project revitalising a formerly abandoned area of Milan, Isola is a ten-storey building designed by William McDonough + Partners that won the 2018 MIPIM Awards for Best Urban Regeneration Project.

Home to Google Italia and Pandora, Isola is a cradle-to-cradle structure designed so that its materials and components can be repurposed or recycled indefinitely and reduces its environmental impacts effectively.

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Isola’s façade features varied openings that add dynamic depth and visual interest. Terracotta cladding and the service core blocks are strategically placed to mitigate the intense afternoon sun, while high-performance glazing systems employ varying degrees of opacity, allowing natural light and expansive views into the office spaces.

Prioritising efficiency and employee well-being, the rational floor plan and optimised core layout maximise space utilisation, while natural ventilation systems and a series of exterior terraces connect occupants with the outdoors, enhancing the workplace environment.

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Originally built in the 1960s as a research facility for one of the first mainframe and supercomputer companies, IA Interior Architects and Lundberg Design have transformed 237 Moffett Park Drive (237 MPD) into a sustainably-led workplace for Google’s Sunnyvale, California campus.

Native landscaping surrounds the building with wet meadows and oak trees, providing wildlife habitat while reducing water demands. Whereas inside, the Oculus courtyard with a large roof opening floods the space with natural light.

While reusing existing building systems, the project team opted for carbon steel and concrete where new materials were needed, reducing embodied carbon by 20 per cent compared to equivalent renovations.

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Eco-friendly interior features include a circuit board art wall made from salvaged materials and approximately 300 oak veneer doors crafted from trees salvaged from the 2018 Mendocino complex fire.

Certified by the International Living Future Institute (ILFI) as the largest renovation project of its kind worldwide, other sustainability systems include 5,000 on-site solar panels covering 91 per cent of annual energy demand, rainwater capture for toilet flushing, and recycled water for irrigation.

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Located in the Vinoly Tower, Google’s Amsterdam office features a whimsical interior design by D/DOCK that pays homage to Google’s garage-startup roots by founders Larry Page and Sergey Brin, with Dutch elements woven throughout the 3,000-sqm space. 

Fitted with graffiti walls, cardboard box lights, and exposed ceilings, the interactive floor plan centres around “The Cave,” a central block housing general facilities, such as meeting rooms with refurbished furnishing, and a 1960s caravan serving as an unconventional meeting space.

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Besides that, the wooden counters at the cafe reference the famous Dutch art movement De Stijl, complementing the reused wooden sports flooring and equipment reminiscent of typical Dutch games.

The flexible workspace dubbed “The Landscape” surrounds “The Cave” with individual workplaces, and 180-degree city views through the floor-to-ceiling windows, while the 70-seater “Tech Talk” auditorium features a distinctive container wall.

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Designed by New York-based COOKFOX Architects in collaboration with San Francisco’s Gensler, Google’s newest New York headquarters is a revamp of the 1930s rail terminal, St John’s Terminal, in Hudson Square, Manhattan. 

An adaptive effort that is projected to save 78,400 metric tons of carbon dioxide emissions, equivalent to removing 17,000 cars from the road for a year; it redefines “green space” for the city’s commercial real estate, through its incorporation of 1.5 acres of vegetation, mostly native to New York State, benefiting local ecology and attracting over 40 bird species.

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Besides eco-friendly features that include solar panels, rainwater retention systems, and reclaimed wood from the Coney Island boardwalk after the 2012 Hurricane Sandy, the design also prioritises collaboration and flexibility for Google’s over 14,000 employees through a “shared neighbourhood” seating model, inspiring social connections and serving as a home base for groups of 20 to 50 Googlers in over 60 “neighbourhoods.”

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