A regulatory compliance market for AI tools is emerging, and a D.C. startup is looking to snag its place within it following $7.75 million in new funding …
A 2025 report from San Francisco market research firm Grand View Research estimates the AI regulatory compliance market will reach $1.4 billion by 2030, growing by over 500% from the $227 million it’s estimated to reach this year.
Luminos.AI was founded in 2022 by former attorneys and data scientists as a spinoff from Luminos.law LLP, which D.C. tech and privacy law firm ZwillGen PLLC acquired in January for an undisclosed sum. ZwillGen provides its law library to Luminos.AI customers amid a partnership between the two firms, allowing users to automate risk assessments of AI systems.
The gift is one of the largest in the history of the historically Black university in D.C. and follows two other large donations from Scott — a $40 million donation in 2020 and a $12 million donation in 2023.
Howard said it will use the funding to help create and maintain facilities and resources for top-level research in AI, automation, scientific discovery, public health and more. The school earlier this year received R1 status, the highest research designation possible for U.S. academic institutions.
The business, from co-owners Ian Callender and Kevin Hallums, has leased about 14,500 square feet of ground-floor space for its newest Sandlot venue at 555 12th St. NW, also known as District Center
“I just fell in love with 555. It’s clean, and it’s exactly what works, as far as turning something on relatively quickly, instead of waiting for the story of a commercial real estate broker trying to find a home-run tenant that might take years,” Callender said. “There really isn’t much work to be done as far as improvements and things of that nature, and we’ll be able to program and keep people downtown without needing support from the city.”
Locating at WeWork will allow Halcyon to better serve startups in more cities, Schraeder said, noting the organization plans to tap into some of the roughly 600 WeWork locations globally — like those in Pittsburgh; Mexico City, Mexico; Nairobi, Kenya; and Bogota and Medellin in Colombia — to provide programming opportunities.
Berry Bros. & Rudd, which bills itself as Britain’s oldest fine wine and spirits merchant, is launching its first U.S. store at 888 17th St. NW near Farragut Square.
BBR’s D.C. store, as well as a dedicated U.S. website, will offer wines and spirits from top producers, celebrated regions and rare and collectible offerings. BBR is also operating its renowned private client service in D.C., a dedicated team of in-market wine specialists offering personalized consultations, tasting appointments and cellar-building counsel.
“Opening our business in the United States marks an exciting new chapter in Berry Bros. & Rudd’s 327-year history,” CEO Emma Fox said in a statement. “As a company that has continually evolved over three centuries to reflect new tastes and markets, we’re thrilled to finally bring our expertise to the U.S.”
Along with its offices in London, BBR has outposts in Hong Kong, Singapore and Tokyo.
Introduced earlier this week, the _Small and Local Business Credit Enhancement Amendment Act of 2025_ would allow the District to offer three-year rent guarantees to qualifying local businesses, helping them secure leases in new and redeveloped commercial projects across the city.
Administered by the Department of Small and Local Business Development, the new program would provide rent guarantees covering up to 100% of rent in the first year, 50% in the second, and 25% in the third. In addition to rent support, the program would offer other credit enhancement services designed to boost small business stability and growth.
The homegrown pizza chain said Thursday it has acquired a Florida-based Tex-Mex chain, Tijuana Flats, and has created a new holding company, Latitude Food Group, to seek out other opportunistic acquisition prospects across the culinary spectrum.
CEO Mike Burns, who has looked to fuel &pizza’s growth since becoming CEO in 2023, said the plan is to grow &pizza and Tijuana Flats as separate brands operating under the same holding company.