The EDGE East Side office tower, designed by Copenhagen/London-based BIG in collaboration with local firm Aukett + Heese, has officially opened in Berlin this summer after dominating the city's skyline for nearly three years. At 142 meters tall, the building currently stands as the tallest commercial structure in the city until the completion of the Estrel Tower in Neukölln, with Amazon occupying 33 of its 35 above-ground floors.

The tower, colloquially dubbed the "Amazon Tower" by locals, rises directly above the subcultural and diverse scene around Warschauer Straße, creating a stark visual contrast with its surroundings. While many Berliners warmly greet the city's iconic TV tower when it appears in the distance, this somewhat bulky high-rise at Warschauer Bridge is unlikely to receive such affectionate treatment. However, critics aren't necessarily bothered by the building's proportions alone.

The project has been mired in public debate for far longer than it has stood in Berlin's skyline. Located on the so-called Anschutz area surrounding today's Uber Arena, the site was purchased in 2004 by U.S. investor Philip Anschutz for development. The Berlin government included provisions for several high-rises in the development plan, including an already completed building by Gewers Pudewill and the EDGE East Side site at the northeastern corner.

The property changed hands multiple times before EDGE Technologies began concrete planning. The urban development contract required a competition without specifying the procedure type. EDGE organized a workshop process in 2017 with three invited firms, giving participants only one week to develop proposals with a jury composed primarily of client representatives. Despite these constraints, BIG's initial winning design reportedly convinced judges with its neighborhood-typical vibrancy, according to Jan Schildknecht, former building supervision director at the Friedrichshain-Kreuzberg urban development office.

The original design was planned in connection with the neighboring East Side Mall, but when project timelines diverged, it became obsolete. The client commissioned BIG to submit a new design without competition, which ultimately formed the basis for the building permit. Whether the architects simply reached into their drawer of finished concepts and pulled out "The Spiral," already planned for New York since 2016, remains speculation. Sharp criticism from the Berlin Building Council regarding the new design had no consequences, as the district had already approved the project.

Local firm Aukett + Heese, who had helped prepare the original workshop process, participated in design phases 2-5. They created the execution plans alongside general contractor Züblin during construction. The high-rise encompasses approximately 85,000 square meters of gross floor area and is designed to accommodate up to 3,000 Amazon employees, with the first workers already moved in.

A platform at the base level connects the office tower to Warschauer Bridge and the East Side Mall. Behind the cascading terraces on the exterior facades, the architects placed atriums to connect floors with each other. Removable ceiling elements make these spaces flexibly configurable, according to the design team. Public areas are located at the very top, where a restaurant with rooftop terrace access is planned to open, and at ground level, where a so-called "Kiezlab" has been established.

Amazon provides 1,400 square meters of office space, workshop rooms, and infrastructure for local and nonprofit initiatives in this community laboratory. According to Schildknecht, this public use stems from the engagement of Friedrichshain-Kreuzberg district councilor Florian Schmidt of the Green Party and was a condition for approval.

Representatives from the tech and startup industry view EDGE East Side as an opportunity for Berlin as a business location. Mayor Kai Wegner of the CDU also expressed satisfaction at the opening about Amazon as a strong employer. However, this praise naturally attracts criticism from opponents. The group "Berlin vs Amazon" has organized several protest actions in the past, accusing the corporation of inhumane working conditions, shameless tax practices, and a business model based on overconsumption. They argue the building also causes social displacement processes in the neighborhood.

For the opening, performance artists Jakob Wirth and Marina Resende Santos covered the Warschauer Straße S-Bahn station sign with "Amazon Straße," aiming to visualize how corporations appropriate urban landscapes. The tower itself hasn't yet been labeled with the company logo, though Amazon indicates they plan to add this in the future. Until then, perhaps the architecture itself serves as an image, as BIG's designs often resemble built pictograms. The gentrification process is certainly visible from afar at the Amazon Tower for everyone to see.