Octopus Cities: The Underwater Metropolises of the Future
I’ve always believed that if aliens landed on Earth, they’d take one look at the ocean and decide not to bother with us land-dwellers at all. Why talk to humans when you’ve got glowing jellyfish, whales that compose songs, and octopuses who build their own cities?
Yep. Cities. Not a typo.
In recent years, marine biologists have uncovered something that feels like the start of a sci-fi movie: octopuses forming what look suspiciously like organized communities. We’re talking construction, social rules, territory disputes, even a little bit of sass.
The most famous of these spots? A place off the coast of Australia called Octopolis.
And before you write that off as a cutesy nickname, know this: scientists are watching how these eight-armed geniuses gather, interact, and modify their environment. And it’s making us rethink everything we thought we knew about solitary marine life, and what the future of intelligent underwater civilization could actually look like.
So let’s dive (pun very much intended) into the weird and wonderful world of octopus cities—and why they matter way more than you think.
What Is Octopolis (and Why Is It Blowing Biologists’ Minds)?
Octopolis is located in Jervis Bay, Australia, about 50 feet below the surface. And while it sounds like a Pixar sequel, it’s very much a real place—and it’s not alone. Another site nearby, dubbed Octlantis, was discovered shortly after, showing similar patterns of behavior.
In these locations, researchers observed multiple octopuses (Octopus tetricus, to be specific) living in close quarters. That alone is odd. Octopuses are famously solitary animals. But here, they were:
Building dens out of shells and debris
Sharing space (sometimes grudgingly)
Interacting regularly (including mating, fighting, and the occasional neighborly shade-throwing)
Modifying their environment to suit their needs
They weren’t just tolerating proximity. They were shaping a kind of octo-society.
And while it’s not the same as a human city—with its coffee shops and zoning laws—what’s happening at these sites looks a lot like the early stages of structured, intelligent group living.
So the question becomes: What does that say about intelligence in non-human species?
Are Octopuses Smart Enough to Build Cities?
Short answer: Oh, absolutely.
Octopuses are some of the most intelligent invertebrates on the planet. They:
Solve puzzles
Escape enclosures
Use tools
Mimic other animals
Have complex hunting strategies
In labs, they’ve been known to unscrew jar lids, memorize mazes, and recognize individual humans. Some researchers even compare their intelligence to that of dogs or young children.
But what’s different about Octopolis is this: it’s showing us social intelligence.
Until recently, the prevailing view was that octopuses were clever, but isolated. They lived short lives, didn’t raise their young, and had no need for social skills.
But now, as we study these underwater neighborhoods, we’re seeing behaviors that suggest:
Territoriality
Cooperation (at least in the sense of tolerating others)
Conflict resolution
Environmental engineering
In other words: they’re not just surviving. They’re organizing.
What Does an Octopus City Actually Look Like?
Imagine a patch of seafloor scattered with empty scallop shells—leftovers from dinner. Octopuses take those shells and start building.
They dig dens. They line them with shells. They push debris out of their space (sometimes at each other like little passive-aggressive neighbors).
Over time, these shell piles form clusters. In Octopolis, as many as 15 octopuses have been observed living together, each with its own den. They interact daily. Sometimes that means mating. Sometimes it means fighting. Sometimes it’s a standoff that ends with someone dramatically inking and leaving.
It’s not utopia. But it’s not chaos, either.
And that’s the most fascinating part. These cephalopods are:
Modifying the environment
Engaging in repeated interactions
Displaying patterns of behavior we once thought were exclusive to mammals and birds
It’s enough to make you wonder what other secrets the ocean’s hiding.
Why This Matters More Than You’d Think
On the surface (or, I guess, below it), Octopolis is just a bunch of squishy sea creatures playing house. But dig deeper, and you’ll find this touches on big themes like:
1. The Evolution of Intelligence
Octopuses are incredibly different from us. They diverged from our evolutionary path around 600 million years ago. Their brains are structured differently. Their bodies are flexible, boneless, and alien. And yet—they’ve developed complex intelligence.
That means intelligence might not be a rare fluke. It might be a convergent trait—something nature invents again and again when conditions are right. The implications are staggering, from alien life on other planets, to other creatures on our own little blue planet.
2. The Nature of Cities
We think of cities as uniquely human. But if animals are creating structured spaces, using tools, and modifying their environments, maybe cities are a natural result of intelligence.
Could we one day see complex, cooperative marine communities? Could octopuses evolve even more advanced behaviors if given enough time—and freedom from fishing nets?
3. The Ethics of Ocean Life
If octopuses are building societies, should we be protecting them the way we protect great apes or elephants?
(And more urgently: should we stop eating them? Even though they are delicious.)
Could Humans Learn to Live Underwater Too?
Okay, now let’s get weird.
What if octopus cities aren’t just cool science stories—but models for what human life could look like off-grid? Underwater habitats aren’t just sci-fi anymore. With rising sea levels and overcrowded cities, more designers and researchers are thinking about how to build aquatic architecture.
There’s even research into using coral-inspired materials to create self-repairing underwater domes.
So picture this:
Dome cities beneath the waves
Powered by algae and tidal energy
Connected by transparent tunnels and autonomous drones
Sharing space with curious cephalopod neighbors
Not only is it dreamy—it’s becoming plausible.
What We Can Learn from the Octopus Approach
Octopuses don’t build for aesthetics. They build for survival. For comfort. For function.
They repurpose the environment. They avoid unnecessary conflict (sort of!). They remain endlessly adaptable.
Sound like any urban planners you know?
As we rethink how we design human spaces—especially in the face of climate change—we could learn a lot from creatures who:
Use recycled materials
Don’t over-engineer
Keep it simple, sustainable, and weirdly efficient
Want to Explore More?
If you’re fascinated by underwater life, here are some fun ways to bring it into your world (affiliate links):
👉 Marine Biology Kits – Great for kids or adults who want to start learning about aquatic ecosystems at home.
👉 Underwater Drones – Explore your local lake, beach, or bay with a remote-controlled camera.
👉 Ocean Exploration Gear – Snorkels, underwater scopes, and marine life guides to help you connect with your inner octopus.
The City Builders We Never Expected
We’ve always looked to the stars to imagine alien life. But maybe we’ve been overlooking something far stranger—right here on Earth.
Octopuses are mysterious, intelligent, and increasingly social. If they’re beginning to cluster, build, and interact in structured ways, who’s to say what they’ll be doing in another few million years?
Octopolis may just be the beginning. The underwater cities of the future? They might not belong to us.
But maybe, just maybe, we’ll learn how to share them.
