Copenhagen-based 3XN has been included in Fast Company’s Most Innovative Companies 2023 list. The 50-company-strong list is described by Fast Company as the “definitive chronicle of the novel ideas transforming business and society,” ranging from ChatGPT creator OpenAI to the art collective Mschf.

Sitting at number 32 on the list, 3XN was included “for upcycling an aging skyscraper into a modern office building,” referencing their recently completed Quay Quarter Tower in Sydney, Australia. The 46-story tower has set a high-profile precedent for adaptive reuse and upcycling in tall buildings, with 65% of the original 1976 structure retained including 95% of its core.

“[Quay Quarter Tower] proves that even something as massive as an outdated office tower can be upcycled into something beautiful and relevant,” Fast Company said. “As a growing number of towers age in cities around the world 3XN’s innovative design presents a vision for how to implement a replicable reuse strategy for buildings that would otherwise be torn down and replaced.”

Following its completion in April 2022, the tower was also named the 2022 World Building of the Year at the World Architecture Festival in Lisbon, Portugal. “It has an excellent carbon story, and it is an example of anticipatory workspace design produced pre-COVID which nevertheless has provided healthy and attractive space for post-pandemic users,” festival director Paul Finch said at the time. “The client was prepared to risk building out an idea on a speculative basis — it worked.”

Other companies included on Fast Company’s list include LanzaTech for transforming carbon waste into useful products, Canva for boosting its design software with generative AI, and Sesame Solar for launching a renewable-powered nanogrid made for emergencies.

“Seeing our work recognized alongside major breakthroughs across industries and scales is not only meaningful to us, but also emphasizes the significance of architecture’s push towards sustainability – with transformation as the next frontier,” said 3XN founder Kim Herforth Nielsen in a statement. “3XN GXN has been a pioneer in sustainability for decades, and we’re excited to see where the next challenge takes us.”