See Photos of WikiLeaks' James Bond-Like Data Headquarters

The data center sits at the site of a former bunker, which was reopened in 2008, and redesigned by Swedish architect Albert France-Lanord. France-Lanord reportedly wanted to recreate the kind of underground futuristic space that would be worthy of a James Bond set -- and he certainly did a good job. With a "floating" conference room, suspended glass hallways, and lunar landscape floor, the Pionen headquarters seems tailor-made for international espionage -- or, in Assange's case, ego-stroking. Old German U-boat engines serve as back-up generators, while artificial waterfalls serve absolutely no real purpose.
Pionen also houses dozens of servers belonging to other companies, and could reportedly withstand a nuclear attack. If these photos are to be believed, and if Wikileaks truly is storing all of its data there, it would really only confirm one thing: Julian Assange is absolutely crazy.





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Comments
47
Subscribe to commentsSatyricalJan 23rd 2011 2:13PM
@orchidpress MOAB, which ACTUALLY stands for Massive Ordinance Air Blast is a fuel-air mixture bomb, not a bunker buster, and is not designed to penetrate or take out hardened underground structures
Anon BudapeshtDec 23rd 2010 11:59PM
As an employee of Aol, I'm ashamed to see this article published under the Aol brand. It's completely devoid of any journalistic integrity, and only seeks to benefit from some perceived consensus that Assange is a deranged lunatic. I guess other companies housing their data in this data center are "absolutely crazy" too.
We should all remember not to seek out unconventional aesthetic qualities in our service providers, so as to be sure we appear to conform to acceptable social norms.... Go AOL!
JenDec 10th 2010 7:16PM
It looks like one of those IKEA showrooms.
CitizenbushidoDec 10th 2010 11:13PM
.
chris nimonDec 10th 2010 11:31PM
I knew I saw this place before. Found this article from 2008. http://poppypetunia.blogspot.com/2008/11/architecture-cavemen-working-in-james.html
landmarklondon-hrdDec 11th 2010 4:56AM
Americans sat, on 9/11, with their military “asleep at the switch,” their president in a daze and Secretary of Defense Rumsfeld, perhaps out of confusion, we may never know, talking about airliners being shot down and the Pentagon being attacked by missiles.
Yes, he said these things, things he couldn’t “unsay” but things the press showed once and quickly buried. Something terribly wrong happened, something years in planning, but not planned in a cave in Afghanistan. Everywhere investigators look, one thing pops up, Israel. The moment that door is opened, it is slammed shut, often with threats, often with more than threats.
We may never know the full extent of the brutality used against those who have spoken up. We know that Arab leaders can be assassinated anywhere, any time. America will remain silent and the news will always support Israel. Israel owns the news.
What about the “suicide” British scientist Dr. David Kelly, the man responsible for moving the Israeli nukes out of South Africa? Reliable sources tell us he was ready to come forward with the facts about a massive political scandal, a cover-up of lost nuclear weapons, blackmail and bribery.
Do we really believe that there are so many unlucky United States senators? Crashes of small aircraft has done more to control the US Senate than any election, control used to set the stage for a generation of wars. With AIPAC capable of buying any election, capable, willing and doing it, not an American organization at all but a lobby for a foreign government,
One that likes America “not so much” as we are lead to believe, is representative government in the United States dead? When someone swears an oath to protect and defend the Constitution of the United States, is it meaningless when the government itself is no longer “American?
Control of America, or, more appropriately, control of America’s vast military, tired and worn as it is, represents the key to ruling the world. Fooling the people, buying the government and duping America’s military through infiltrating every level of critical decision making and communications is a task, not only attempted but one long since accomplished.
Problem is, even with, not only control of the press, but powerful news organizations directly under foreign control like Fox News, word is getting out.
The American people are afraid, they see disaster coming. Everyone is waiting to see what city is chosen to be sacrificed, will it be Phoenix or Sacramento or perhaps Atlanta? This is the real fear, the “not so secret” fear in the heart of every American. When and if it happens, Americans are not so willing to believe a few goat herds in a cave 8000 miles away planned it, not anymore,
Why do you think Senator Lieberman has demanded a “kill switch” on the internet? Why do you think “censorship czar” Cass Sunstein has asked to have accusations of Israeli complicity in 9/11 made a criminal act and openly advocated infiltration of groups pushing for an honest investigation. Who is the real “conspiracy theorist” now?
With thousands of of military and intelligence officials, retirees openly, others hiding their rage, aware of the decades of Israeli spying and the 9/11 cover-up, this divide has never been so strong. What we don’t know is how many serving today have the personal courage to speak out openly. Now the threat is nuclear weapons, not just a “shoebox dirty bomb” but full sized nukes,
The weapons we have been hunting for years, claiming Saddam was prepared to use them “at 45 minutes notice,” the same nukes “sent to Syria by ambulance.” They could be anywhere and anyone could be ready to use one. There is only one possible culprit capable of doing this, however, only one country with something to gain and the willingness to act.
We have hundreds of nuclear warheads and missiles that can reach different targets in the heart of the European continent, including beyond the borders of Rome, the Italian capital… our armed forces, however, are not the thirtieth strongest in the world, but rather the second or third. We have the capability to take the world down with us. Israeli military historian, Martin van Creveld.
Today, America may be facing the nuclear holocaust Creveld describes and there is no reason to trust that our military, intelligence and law enforcement, the dozens of agencies, bureaus and commands tasked with defending America are willing to do so if the attack comes from Israel.
In fact, some leaders, even a former head of the Department of Homeland Security, could be on a list of those that might be one of the America’s greatest terrorist threats.. how can perceptions differ so much?
alexmontyFeb 25th 2011 7:17AM
Does wikileaks actually own this establishment or is it just a place that they along with 1000's of other businesses store there data securely.
This article is misleading.
Anyone with any common sense would see that to house documents and a few video files would take up very little hardware.( relatively speaking)
Why does this article contain no reference to those that were murdered in broad daylight by apache gunships. Is high tech murder now legal?
As usual you are being led away from the real issues of human rights abuses by the US Government. More smoke screens by the embedded media.
London Massif