16/12/2023
In 2021, South African-American entrepreneur Art Finch began pitching government officials in the Himalayan kingdom of Bhutan on a moonshot idea: transforming Gelephu, a sleepy, scenic town on its border with neighboring India, into an experimental, “eco-industrial” charter city.
The tiny town, he argued, was perfectly positioned to become a hub for free thinkers and innovators around the world who would bring their knowledge and wealth to Bhutan. It would be a commercial paradise of green architecture and sustainable industry. More importantly, Finch’s startup, backed by one of billionaire Peter Thiel’s VC firms, had secured letters of intent from 19 foreign tech companies including lab grown diamond unicorn Diamond Foundry, British drone startup Dronamics, and Finnish carbon capture operator Carbo Culture to become inaugural tenants in Yung Drung City, which it claimed would provide an economic jolt to a country still emerging from decades of self-imposed isolation.
“21st century development in the last Shangri-La,” the utopian project teased on its website.
Now, that future has arrived. Forbes has learned that the “Dragon King” Jigme Khesar Namgyel Wangchuck will officially announce a “megacity” in a royal address on Sunday, according to four sources with knowledge of the event.
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