Architecture Plus Information (A+I) joins global design firm Perkins&Will in one of the most consequential New York mergers of the decade.

Unification of workplace strategy titan A+I with the no. 2 architecture firm in the U.S. responds to growing demand for high-end, amenity-rich office design in New York City and global markets 

NEW YORK — A+I, is now part of Perkins&Will.

“This is a critical business strategy for us—and one that we know will be hugely impactful,” says Perkins&Will CEO Phil Harrison. “Together with A+I, we’re creating a multidisciplinary design powerhouse in one of the most competitive commercial real estate markets in the world. And we’re doing it at one of the most exciting times in the history of our profession—an era in which the desire for information and technology is coalescing around a renewed return-to-office ethos. In effect, it’s driving up demand for premium, high-tech office buildings and workplaces.” 

According to recent trend reports from CBRE and JLL, that demand is expected to continue—as will investment in workplace design and sustainability performance. Meanwhile, New York City’s new M-CORE program, which incentivizes building repositionings south of 59th Street in Manhattan, is paving the way for a host of other transformational design opportunities. 

“This merger intentionally positions us to meet the rising demand for high-performance, amenity-rich workplaces,” says Kate Thatcher, CEO of A+I. “Together, we’re more than just our size and reach: We’re going to deliver design excellence and innovation with every engagement and set the standard for superlative client care.” 

Expanded reach, elevated impact 

A+I, which stands for Architecture Plus Information, serves a variety of marquee clients in the financial, tech, and commercial real estate sectors, including Bloomberg, Commonwealth, Google, Hines, Tishman Speyer, TPG, and Vornado. Its merger with the second-largest design firm in the U.S. significantly expands the combined firms’ capacity to deliver strategic consulting, planning, and design services—not only in the workplace, corporate, and commercial sectors, but also in the healthcare, higher education, life sciences, and transit sectors. All of these are currently served by Perkins&Will’s New York and Philadelphia studios. 

“By integrating A+I’s client-centered approach to transformative workplace design and brand strategy with Perkins&Will’s robust advisory services and deep expertise in architecture and interior design, we’re creating a formidable new practice that’s ready to lead the industry,” Thatcher adds. 

Greater capacity, enhanced capabilities 

Scaling up is a primary goal of the merger. Adding A+I’s 80 staff nearly doubles the size of Perkins&Will New York, making it the firm’s second-largest studio worldwide with 179 employees and counting. Including Philadelphia, the staff count jumps to 190. Additionally, thanks to 

Perkins&Will’s geographic reach, A+I’s clients in cities like Chicago, Houston, London, Miami, San Francisco, and Washington, D.C. can now benefit from locally based project team members. 

“By joining forces, A+I and Perkins&Will can serve more clients, take on larger and more complex projects, and leverage our combined geographic reach, all while maintaining the same superior quality and level of personalized service we’re both known for,” says John Sadlon, Perkins&Will’s firmwide workplace practice leader. 

A+I also brings expertise in the visual and architectural expression of a client’s brand, values, and culture—a practice known within Perkins&Will as branded environments. This will be the first in-house team of its kind in Perkins&Will’s New York studio, and a significant addition to the firm’s branded environments practice in the Northeast region. 

“This isn’t just a story about our complements and synergies. It’s about our combined power potential,” says Brad Zizmor, co-founder of A+I. “In this equation, one plus one is three. Together, we’ve got world-class design talent. We’ve got best-in-class design strategists. And we’ve got the kind of fervor, gusto, and ambition that will take our business—and our clients’ success—to the next level.” 

Complementary leadership transitions 

Under the terms of the merger, Zizmor and fellow co-founder Dag Folger, who launched A+I in 1996, join Perkins&Will full-time as managing principals. Thatcher becomes managing director of Perkins&Will’s New York and Philadelphia studios, leading them alongside current managing director Robert Clemens as the two firms integrate. Following integration, Clemens, a managing principal at Perkins&Will, will focus on client engagement, business development, and project design leadership as the corporate and commercial practice leader for the studios. 

“Since joining Perkins&Will in 2021—first as operations director, then as managing director—it’s been my goal to strategically grow our practice in New York City and the surrounding region,” says Clemens. “We’ve accomplished that in many ways, from building a transit practice to opening a successful Philadelphia studio in 2023 to winning transformative commissions like the Climate Innovation Hub at the Brooklyn Army Terminal. Our merger with A+I will rapidly accelerate that growth momentum. Together, we’re going to be able to serve clients in ways they never even dreamed were possible.” 

Other changes include A+I’s chief design officer Sommer Schauer becoming design director for Perkins&Will’s New York and Philadelphia studios, and A+I’s chief design strategist Peter Knutson becoming design principal. Along with Thatcher, Zizmor, and Folger, they join Perkins&Will principals Carolyn BaRoss, Robert Clemens, Heather Currier Hunt, Laura Morris, Rob Goodwin, Jennifer Graham, Matthew Krissel, Matt Malone, Michael Mrowiec, Rachel Rose, Maha Sabra, and John Sadlon. 

A+I’s four studio directors—Neil Bartley, Nathan Bluestone, Virginia Chiappa Nuñez, and Wilfredo Rodriguez-Joglar—come to Perkins&Will as associate principals, joining Julio Colon, Dawne David-Pierre, Mariana Giraldo, Arjav Shah, Robert Wall, and Alei Zanoni. 

“I have every confidence that our cultures will thrive together because we share values of respect, trust, kindness, and mutual support,” Thatcher says. “A+I and Perkins&Will are creating a magical blend of strategic thinking, entrepreneurialism, collaboration, clarity of communication, and design excellence. We’re just scratching the surface of what’s possible.” 

About Perkins&Will 

Perkins&Will, an interdisciplinary, research-based architecture and design firm, was founded in 1935 on the belief that design has the power to transform lives. The firm is committed to creating a better, beautiful, more equitable world through Living Design, an approach that integrates environmental, social, and design considerations to advance ecological health and well-being. Interior Design named Perkins&Will a “Sustainability Giant” in 2024; Architizer named it the world’s “Best Sustainable Firm” in 2023; and Metropolis named it “Firm of the Year” in 2022 for its industry leadership in advancing climate action and social justice. Fast Company named Perkins&Will one of the World’s Most Innovative Companies in Architecture three times, and in 2021, it added the firm to its list of Brands That Matter—making Perkins&Will the first architecture practice in the world to earn the distinction. 

With an international team of more than 2,600 professionals, Perkins&Will has over 30 studios worldwide, providing integrated services in architecture, interior design, branded environments, urban design, and landscape architecture. Recent projects from the firm’s New York and Philadelphia studios include the workplace strategy for credit ratings giant Moody’s; the offices of global investment firm Franklin Templeton; the boutique creative office building 799 Broadway; the Center for Orthopaedics and Physical Performance at URM; Weill Cornell Medicine’s new student residences; Columbia University’s Tennis Center; West End Labs; and JFK Terminal One’s welcome plazas.