Saudi Arabia is building a city for 500 billion dollars, where people will live with robots

At the border of desert and sea, among sands and high temperatures, Saudi Arabia is building something completely new - NEOM, the city of the future.

This is not just a megalopolis, it's a utopian concept of life without cars, without emissions and, as stated, with maximum comfort. Ultra-technological, autonomous, managed by artificial intelligence, NEOM promises to change the very concept of urban environment. But in the race for innovation, an important question arises: how will humans feel there?

While architects and engineers design the "perfect" city, psychologists view this with caution. Ultra-structured spaces, where everything is calculated in advance, can cause a feeling of loss of spontaneity. The human brain needs chaos, unpredictability, mistakes. When everything is perfectly aligned - from lighting to the rhythm of life - there is a risk of emotional burnout or, conversely, a feeling of sterile detachment from reality.

One of the features of NEOM is the linear structure "The Line", an extended megastructure 170 km long, where everything - from home to office - will be within walking distance. Sounds perfect. But for the psyche, this can be a confined space where there is no sense of "exit", "path", "transition" - elements important for the perception of time and space.

A separate challenge is digitalization. NEOM will be managed by artificial intelligence, which will analyze the behavior of residents to optimize their lives. But can a life in which an algorithm decides everything for you be psychologically sustainable? It's important for a person to feel control, make choices, even make mistakes. Excessive control by machines can turn into an invisible cage.

Saudi Arabia has allocated 500 billion dollars from the sovereign fund for the construction of the city, which will be directed to the development of nine key sectors: energy, water supply, transport, biotechnology, food, digital systems, manufacturing, media and entertainment. The city as an innovative project of the digital era is promised to be adapted not only for people but also for robots. There is already a precedent: smart machines like robot Sophia, who received Saudi Arabian citizenship in 2017, can become residents.

In addition, cultural questions remain. Saudi Arabia remains a conservative country with restrictions, especially in the sphere of personal freedoms. And even if NEOM is positioned as a more open space, mental health cannot exist in isolation from basic rights and freedoms. Comfort is impossible without self-expression.

Nevertheless, the project can be a breakthrough if the architecture takes into account psychological needs: the presence of nature, diversity of spaces, access to solitude and silence, respect for personal choice. Mental health is not provided only by silence and clean air - it requires depth, spontaneity, and emotional ecology.

The city of the future is not only technology but also people. And if there is no place for emotions, anxieties, and inner freedom at the heart of this city, it risks remaining just a beautiful decoration.

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