Zaha Hadid Architects has released images of their proposed Daxia Tower in Xi’an, China. The tower will form part of the city’s high-tech zone, which is repositioning the city from its historic Silk Road roots to become a “major hub for new technology.”

The 700-foot-tall tower will contain over 1.3 million square feet of offices, retail, and ancillary facilities. The scheme’s “gently curving silhouette” is accentuated by layers of patterned glazing and large atriums to increase natural light volumes internally. Each atrium creates a “cascade of planted interior terraces that echo mountainside waterfalls,” while also offering views of the historic city and high-tech zone.

“Optimizing natural daylighting and ventilation using high-performance low-emissivity, unitized glazing with a thermal coating and insulated for low U-values to reduce energy demand and enhance efficiencies, the tower’s responsive facade with integrated sensors will include photovoltaics to enable renewable energy production to power various systems within the building,” Zaha Hadid Architects explains about the building’s energy strategy.

Other climatic and resource strategies to be included in the scheme are a rainwater harvesting system to collect and store rainwater as a supplementary source for non-potable water, and sensors throughout the tower which can help recognize occupancy patterns to adjust climate conditions.

News of the tower comes weeks after Zaha Hadid Architects opened ‘The New World’ exhibition to mark the firm’s 15 years of operation in China.