APRIL 16, 2024
Published Atlanta Business News and Citybiz
Proposed ‘FutureVerse’ museum could bring 1 million people Downtown, backers say
By Amy Wenk – Staff Reporter, Atlanta Business Chronicle
Apr 16, 2024
Updated Apr 16, 2024 3:58pm EDT
Imagine a museum that showcases the future of space travel. The marvels of the human body. Advancements in robotics and innovations in farming.
This is the vision for a $100 million museum planned for Downtown Atlanta called FutureVerse.
Leaders at Georgia Tech, Emory University and University of Georgia are advising the project.
They see an opportunity to expose more people to technology.
“We’ll be building this with some of Georgia’s brightest minds,” said David Wynett, FutureVerse president and chief creative officer.
Wynett is an Atlanta native and UGA grad who previously work for Delta Air Lines and founded New York-based consulting firm Prodigy Works. He helped create products for clients such as The Coca-Cola Co., Nestlé S.A. and Procter & Gamble.
The museum is still in planning, and the team has raised about $250,000, Wynett said.
The team hasn’t selected a site for the museum. But Atlanta Business Chronicle confirmed it has had early talks with Centennial Yards, the $5 billion redevelopment of The Gulch next to Mercedes-Benz Stadium. FutureVerse is working with Cushman & Wakefield, according to an announcement.
A.J. Robinson, president of Central Atlanta Progress, said in a prepared statement that FutureVerse will complement existing Downtown attractions.
“As Atlanta continues to be a top destination for people from across the globe, the proposed FutureVerse Museum will be a one-of-a-kind, immersive, educational experience,” Robinson said.
“We’ll be building this with some of Georgia’s brightest minds,” said David Wynett, FutureVerse president and chief creative officer.
Wynett is an Atlanta native and UGA grad who previously work for Delta Air Lines and founded New York-based consulting firm Prodigy Works. He helped create products for clients such as The Coca-Cola Co., Nestlé S.A. and Procter & Gamble.
The museum is still in planning, and the team has raised about $250,000, Wynett said.
The team hasn’t selected a site for the museum. But Atlanta Business Chronicle confirmed it has had early talks with Centennial Yards, the $5 billion redevelopment of The Gulch next to Mercedes-Benz Stadium. FutureVerse is working with Cushman & Wakefield, according to an announcement.
A.J. Robinson, president of Central Atlanta Progress, said in a prepared statement that FutureVerse will complement existing Downtown attractions.
“As Atlanta continues to be a top destination for people from across the globe, the proposed FutureVerse Museum will be a one-of-a-kind, immersive, educational experience,” Robinson said.
Georgia Tech, other universities get on board with FutureVerse museum
FutureVerse has recruited top education and business leaders.
Its board of advisors includes: Scott Boden, chief strategy officer for Emory Healthcare and Woodruff Health Science Center; Bert Reeves, vice president of institute relations for Georgia Tech; Nick Place, dean of UGA’s College of Agricultural and Environmental Sciences; Kyle Reis, president and CEO of architecture firm Cooper Carry; and Joel Bush, partner at law firm Kilpatrick, Townsend & Stockton.
“If we’re doing a museum about the future in Atlanta, it makes all the sense in the world for Georgia Tech to be heavily involved,” Reeves said in an interview. He discussed potential exhibits around sustainable buildings and Atlanta’s robust startup ecosystem.
Emory’s Boden sees the potential to inspire young people through the latest advancements in personalized medicine, robotics and artificial intelligence.
“Emory is backing and interested in the project, at the very least in an advisory capacity,” he said. “We’ve had some conversations about trying to be responsible for the design and content of the healthcare portion of the exhibit.”
And, Place in a statement said UGA aims to offer its expertise on agricultural and environmental innovation.
“Through FutureVerse, we anticipate sharing our research and endeavors, illustrating how we are not just feeding and fueling our world today, but paving the way for generations to come,” Place said.
What is the FutureVerse museum?
The museum could span 150,000 square feet. It is projected to see 1.2 million visitors a year, according to an announcement.
Cooper Carry is the architect. A rendering provided to the Chronicle shows a curved building with rooftop attractions, including a garden.
“It is a fascinating design challenge and opportunity,” Reis with Cooper Carry told the Chronicle in an email. “I have been intrigued by the caliber of creative people who have gotten behind it. It will be an incredible asset for Atlanta that will attract curious minds to explore the possibility of what our collective future holds.”
Inside, the museum would feature six galleries connected to a large atrium, set up in a hub-and-spoke format like the Georgia Aquarium. It will also have an innovation lab, where visitors will be able to offer their solutions to pressing challenges.
“We are not just showing the future. We are helping to shape it, too,” Wynett said.
The galleries would be focused on health, transportation, technology, art and film, gaming and the Earth. The exhibits would feature digital projection technologies such as virtual reality.
“I see holographic projections showing the latest on the human body or space travel that will leave you breathless,” Wynett said. “We really want to transform the museum experience and really increase attendance with these very immersive experiences.”