What’s the deal with the bunker building videos flooding TikTok?

A bizarre new trend has swept social media in recent months, filling TikTok and Instagram with time-lapse videos depicting the construction of secret underground bunkers.

These clips are generated by artificial intelligence and often feature physically impossible bunker designs.

In some cases, these imaginary spaces are carved from tree trunks. In other cases, they are made from impossibly large pieces of fruit. In one clip, a man is seen carving a secret chamber into a giant papaya (the size of a van). They usually feature shipping containers that have been buried to create backyard bunkers.

The trend seems to stem in part from a certain YouTube account: Home magicwhich has amassed almost 400,000 subscribers and a staggering 431 million views since its launch in January this year.

The channel started another trend: AI-generated videos of elaborate epoxy-sealed floors. But the anonymous creator’s content quickly switched to bunker videos starting in February. Home Magic did not respond to a request for comment.

Another channel, Peaceful creationsalso began posting bunker videos in February and quickly evolved to focus on the underground or underwater containers that have become a mainstay of the genre.

Each of the clips features a sped-up timeline of (usually) a man in work clothes using power tools to build a bunker. The dimensions of the outdoor space – often a shipping container – do not quite match the expansive dimensions of the indoor space.

“For some, the popularity of AI-generated bunker videos stems from a mix of escapism and genuine fear,” says Robin Edwardsa real estate purchasing agent Curetons property finders in London. “People are fascinated by the idea of ​​self-sufficient underground homes because they combine luxury, survival and futuristic design in a way that is visually appealing.

“AI has certainly increased that interest by turning what was once a niche concept into something that people can easily imagine, create and pursue, even if it is often more fantasy than reality,” he adds.

Ron HubbardCEO of Atlas Survival Sheltersagrees. He believes people are fascinated by these videos because they equate bunkers with an ‘elite’, aspirational lifestyle.

Hubbard has worked on bunkers Kim Kardashian, Mark ZuckerbergAnd Mr. Beastamong other things, and says they have become something of a status symbol for the ultra-rich.

“Having a bunker now is like having the new Rolex or a new Ferrari in the garage,” he says.

Moreover, they can be expanded all amenities.

“There’s a large movie theater with a shooting range, a kitchen, a bathroom and a pool table. This is what today’s modern bunkers look like. They’re usable spaces. So people don’t feel like they’re wasting money on a bunker they hope they never need, but are actually converting an area into a nice man cave or fun room.”

Bunkers are becoming increasingly popular in disaster-affected areas

Whether sitting in a reinforced concrete space sounds like “fun” may be a matter of opinion, but Hubbard says they are becoming increasingly practical in a world where natural and man-made disasters are occurring with increasing frequency.

Earlier this year he visited Dubai just days before Iranian missiles struck the area. After the attacks, interest in building bunkers and air raid shelters in the region skyrocketed. And in the wake of Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, both Poland And Turkey Legislation has recently been passed requiring that new construction also include provisions for air raid shelters.

“Fall shelters are like an umbrella,” he says. “You only think about it when it starts to rain” – or in the case of Dubai, “when rockets start falling.”

Edwards says he still doesn’t see much demand for them among London’s elites, but says, “for some of my more high-profile and politically connected clients, they are certainly useful and desirable to have.

“While most of my buyers don’t plan on hopefully ever having to live in a bunker, I see a growing curiosity for more resilient homes with features like backup power sources, secure storage and off-grid capabilities.”

Bunkers for everyone?

Hubbard hopes that the desire for bunkers will begin to dawn on the average home buyer. He now sells a package to help developers install ‘safe rooms’ in new build homes and has seen them installed in more than 700 homes.

“A bunker can be just one bedroom, but the walls can be 12-inch thick concrete with a roof over it,” he says. He admits this may seem excessive now, but insists such rooms could be standard in all new homes soon enough.

“Imagine,” he adds, “a hundred years ago there were no bathrooms in houses, and someone got the idea to put a toilet in the house.”