Netflix’s "Skyscraper Live" Spotlights Taipei 101

Skyscraper Live, a two-hour global event from Netflix, features climber Alex Honnold attempting a rope-free ascent of Taipei 101, one of the world’s most iconic supertall buildings. 

Rising 1,671 feet over Taipei, Taiwan, the 101-story tower was designed to withstand some of the most demanding seismic and wind conditions on the planet. Thornton Tomasetti provided the building’s structural design concept and preliminary engineering, working with C.Y. Lee & Partners to shape a tower that balances strength, flexibility, and resilience at extraordinary height. 

The climb will traverse the tower’s distinctive stacked form – eight-story “bamboo box” segments inspired by traditional Chinese architecture. Structurally, this repetitive system allows the building to dissipate seismic and wind energy while maintaining occupant comfort. At the upper levels, a 728-ton tuned mass damper further reduces movement, helping the structure remain stable under extreme conditions. 

The tallest building in the world from it’s completion in 2004 until 2010, Taipei 101 remains a benchmark in skyscraper engineering and performance-based design. Its appearance on a live global broadcast offers a rare public view of how structural systems shape building performance and the experience of a supertall tower at extreme height.

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