It’s our last Capital Insights for 2025, see you all in the new year!
The Swedish developer signed architecture and design firm Corgan to 9,700 SF and the University of Michigan to 11,500 SF in the 17xM building at 1700 M St. NW. The third lease is for a professional services firm that requested confidentiality, a Skanska spokesperson said.
“Whether relocating from nearby or entering the D.C. market for the first time, 17xM has become a premier destination for organizations seeking a best-in-class workplace,” Skanska Executive Vice President Mark Carroll said.
BXP Inc. is capping 2025 the same way it kicked off the year, unveiling blockbuster plans to demolish a high-profile downtown D.C. office building and re-develop the site with a trophy office anchored by a major law firm.
The real estate investment trust plans to raze the 300,000-square-foot office at 2100 M St. NW and redevelop it as a 320,000-square-foot “premier workplace.”
Six companies have secured nine‑figure investments in the span of eight weeks valued cumulatively at over $1.4 billion, a level of late‑stage capital the region hasn’t seen in years, if ever.
From AI and cybersecurity to nuclear energy and defense, the deals — ranging from $100 million to $700 million — mark a sharp acceleration in big‑ticket financing for the region’s most advanced technology firms. Rockville’s X-energy Reactor Co. saw the bulk of this funding, raising $700 million last month, though Clarksburg autonomous vehicle developer Forterra also garnered $238 million.
It’s nearly all systems go for D.C. startup Besxar Space Industries Inc. as it readies the first launch of its semiconductor manufacturing equipment into space. The startup, founded in 2023 by CEO Ashley Pilipiszyn, emerged from stealth in October.
She said being close to customers is important, which is why she ultimately relocated the startup from Los Angeles to D.C. before emerging from stealth — one of a list of companies that have done the same over the past year. The highly educated and experienced talent here, especially engineers from local aerospace and defense companies, will also be valuable to the company, Pilipiszyn said.
Leading Authorities Inc. signed a lease in the fourth quarter to relocate in September into 17,739 square feet at the 12-story, 191,000-square-foot 1875 K St. NW. The firm will move from 14,354 square feet at 1725 Eye St. NW
The deal, arranged by Cresa brokers Mindy Saffer and Jonathan Harms, marks “a significant upgrade in building quality” for the firm that’s experiencing “rapid growth,” Cresa said in a statement.