MANIFESTO
True Innovation
Graham Bell didn't conduct market research to invent the telephone. Neither did Enzo, who built the first Ferrari in Maranello in 1945, nor Steve Jobs, who developed the Macintosh in his parents' garage in 1984.
AUTHOR:
Andy Keel
Groundbreaker & Openly Founder
Building better ways to build
LinkedIn / andy.keel@openly.systems
© The quotes are taken from my personal manifesto and are protected by copyright.
PROLOGUE
“We’re building the wrong way today.
And poorly.” ©
The construction industry accounts for a quarter of global CO2 emissions—eight times more than all air travel combined. This has to stop.
For millions of years, nature has been operating the perfect circular economy. Openly brings building back to its roots.
In love with success
MANIFESTO
Storing CO2 Instead of Emitting It
A house should no longer be a source of CO2 emissions. Through the extensive use of biogenic materials such as wood, clay, hemp, and straw, Openly buildings sequester up to 0.25 metric tons of CO2 per square meterof gross floor area.
“We store carbon in buildings; we live in them.”©
Buildings as Carbon Sinks ©
The Grand Openly Vision
01
Local Handicrafts Instead of Mass-Production Factories
True scalability doesn't require factories costing millions with crushing fixed costs. We make use of existing, decentralized prefabrication facilities in Europe.
Nature grows everywhere—and so does our building system.
02
Smart Physics Instead of Building Systems Madness
We are replacing error-prone and expensive machines with intelligent building design.
By minimizing building services and using smart systems such as the Openly Airbox, we create highly efficient energy-plus homes.
“Simplicity makes things repairable, saves money, reduces CO2 emissions, and cuts down on hassle”©
03
Sustainability simply has to be worthwhile
Environmentalism must not be an ideological luxury; rather, it must become a compelling business case.
Through the use of standardized components and radically optimized procurement, we are demonstrating that building with biogenic materials is feasible at market-standard costs.
The return is right.
04
Planning in months instead of years
Nature doesn't wait, and neither do we.
While the industry is bogged down in years-long planning cycles and loses expertise at every stage of the planning process, we use artificial intelligence to shorten the entire process to just a few months.
Speed is changing the market.
05
Openly Ground Zero with Andy Keel on April 24, 2023
No waste—everything comes back
Every Openly building is designed so that, at the end of its life cycle, it can be completely dismantled and recycled (whether assembled with plugs or screws).
We are reviving the traditional principles of the centuries-old Appenzell house:
We leave behind raw material deposits, not trash.©
06
Independence ensures the vision
Major changes require patience, not a focus on the next quarter.
Openly deliberately operates without traditional venture capital investors. We build to make a real impact, not to meet investors' short-term exit expectations.
“Starting a company that will last over the long term is one of the greatest challenges.
The art lies in using it to make the world a better place.”©
07
Sharing helps us all move forward.
Our Partners
Climate change cannot be stopped by one person alone. Our system is open (“Openly”).
We share patents, collaborate transparently with the leading minds in architecture and the building materials industry, and work together to establish new global standards.
Nothing stands alone
Everything we have is based on the knowledge, systems, designs, and efforts of those who came before us.
This legacy comes with responsibility—the obligation to build on what already exists and to add something new and meaningful.©
That's the essence
08
Design matters©
Bionic architecture combines radical environmental performance with a modern, minimalist aesthetic*.
Openlys are healthier.
Natural spaces are not a sacrifice, but rather a pure enhancement of quality of life that also safeguards long-term property value.
The result of poor design is not total collapse, but uniformity.
It creates subtle frustration, eventually fades away, and ends up as trash.©
09
*Keel is the founder and chairman of www.dade-design.com
Action, Not Greenwashing
We do not participate in theoretical lectures on sustainability or bureaucratic certificate shenanigans.
We provide tangible proof. Always in the form of plus-energy buildings. Anyone who wants to see the future of construction doesn’t have to wait for studies—they can step inside our completed buildings.
Our projects
Public Guided tour every last Thursday of the month
10
Original Version of the manifesto before the communications and marketing teams got their hands on it.