Blackberry founder Mike Lazaridis' $150 million superyacht has a dedicated Tai Chi room with a ceiling tall enough to wield a sword above the head. The billionaire clad his 262 feet vessel in 70 tons of glass. It boasts a movie theater and an artistic 14

Sep 29, 2023

Artefact, the motor yacht of the year for 2021, is another example of Nobiskrug's yacht-building prowess after Sailing Yacht A. The 262-footer is a sailing statement of unrestricted imagination and technological advancement, and is built by family, for family Artefact is the culmination of efforts that came together after owner Mike Lazaridis and his clan experienced the wonders of a yacht on holiday. Let's take a detailed look at the Artefact superyacht –What sets Artefact apart from its counterparts?Simply saying that this luxury vessel is different from whatever sails on the high seas isn't enough. Small elements like the yacht's layout, materials used, and design give this yacht an edge. The forward area of the boat only accommodates the owner's panoramic office on the owner's deck, while operations consume the rest. The forward end of the main deck houses a well-designed crew area with a lounge and guest cabins located centrally on the deck below.

The main lounge is an elegant space that uses ample glass and flaunts a ceiling made of carved oak over acoustic panels wrapped in Majilite (faux leather) inspired by Lazaridis's house. The saloon houses an armillary sphere as an ode to Lazaridis's love for science. Before Galileo, he explained, "Armillary spheres were super complicated and not that accurate, but once humans realized the earth was not at the center, the armillary became very simple. This one helps you navigate the earth and figure out where all the constellations are."

Bronze planets, metalized resin satellites, orbit a planetary compass. Per Boat International, laser-cut metalized inlays document their movements around the sky. The dining room chandelier emulates the astronomical element made by interior outfitter List. The light-up domes represent the planets on their path around the solar system. Reymond Langton Design has set a new benchmark with this suave and smart superyacht. It is correctly called the perfect marriage of art and science through ground-breaking architectural design and innovative engineering.

The exterior, designed by Gregory C. Marshall, features 8,073 square feet of glass weighing 70 tons. "We did not just put in an interior, we really [strived] for the interior to work with the outside, the acoustic, and the volume. It is one of the cleverest designs we’ve done. It is a smart boat," Reymond said.

Blackberry billionaire Mike Lazaridis owns the Artefact yacht-The 62-year-old Canadian tycoon worth $1.9 billion served as the co-chairman and co-CEO of BlackBerry from 1984 to 2012. Born in Istanbul, Turkey, the science enthusiast won a prize at the Windsor Public Library for reading every science book in the library (he was five years old when his family moved to Canada). He enrolled at the University of Waterloo in electrical engineering. Merely two months before graduation Lazardiris dropped out owing to a General Motors contract to develop a network computer control display system. The contract, along with a government grant and a loan from Lazaridis's parents, helped the businessman to launch Research In Motion which eventually developed the BlackBerry brand. The BlackBerry wireless mobile device was introduced in 1999. Lazaridis resigned in 2012, and the BlackBerry phone line was discontinued in 2016. Lazaridis now looks after his investment company Quantum Valley Investments, and dedicated his time to philanthropy, and education donations.