RIOS

What RIOS does

RIOS is a privately held, Los Angeles–founded multidisciplinary design collective operating since 1985 with approximately 300 team members across seven global offices (Los Angeles, Austin, Boulder, New York, London, Singapore, Shanghai). The firm delivers an integrated suite of design services spanning architecture, landscape architecture, urban design, interior architecture, master planning, and its proprietary Experience Design (EXD) practice, which combines architecture, digital media, interaction design, and storytelling to produce immersive, multi-sensory environments. Core specializations include content-creation campuses for film, television, and music clients; sports-anchored mixed-use districts; luxury residential and hospitality; workplace strategy; and life-sciences research facilities.

RIOS generates revenue through project-based professional services fees, typically structured as a percentage of construction cost or fixed fees tied to scope, with clients including major entertainment studios (Sony Pictures Entertainment, Spotify, FOX/Disney, NBCUniversal, Paramount), large real-estate developers and capital partners (BARDAS/Bain Capital Real Estate on ECHELON Studios Hollywood; Cain International on One Beverly Hills; United Center Joint Venture on The 1901 Project), corporates (Tishman Speyer, GoodRx, Vrbo/Expedia Group), and government entities such as the Telangana Government on the Musi Riverfront Development Project. Notable proof points cited by the firm include 91% retail occupancy at ROW DTLA versus 65% in comparable districts and a 600,000+ sq ft ECHELON Studios Hollywood campus.

The firm pursues major projects via competitive RFPs and direct enterprise relationships (sales-led motion), supported by a content-driven marketing footprint (website, newsletter, social, PR in Architectural Digest and LA Times, and conference speaking). RIOS is independently owned with no disclosed institutional investors; key partners include Creative Directors Mark Rios, Sebastian Salvadó, and Katherine Harvey, Managing Partner Mark Motonaga, CFO Monica Gustafson, and CMO/Partner Erin Gehle.

Name

RIOS

Legal name

RIOS

Website

https://rios.com

Company type

Private

Founded year

1985

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

251–500 employees

Short description

RIOS is a privately held, Los Angeles–founded multidisciplinary design collective (1985) with 300+ team members across seven global offices, providing integrated architecture, landscape architecture, urban design, interior design, and experience design services to entertainment studios, real-estate developers, corporates, and government clients.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Architectural & Multidisciplinary Design Services

NAICS

Architectural Services (541310), Landscape Architectural Services (54132), Interior Design Services (54141), Architectural, Engineering, and Related Services (5413)

SIC

Services-Engineering, Accounting, Research, Management (8700), Services-Engineering Services (8711)

akta.pro primary industry

Architectural Design Services (BPAHAKAA)

akta.pro secondary industries

Landscape Architecture & Site Design (BPAHAKAC), Interior Design Services (BPAHAKAB), Community Engagement & Participatory Planning (BPAHAKAO)

Keywords

• Architecture design services
• Landscape architecture
• Urban design
• Interior architecture
• Experience design

Headquarters

HQ city

Los Angeles

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Offices7 records

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Marketing or Sales, Technology or R&D, Infrastructure

Revenue model

1. Professional Design Services: Fee-based professional services for architecture, landscape architecture, urban design, interior design, and experience design projects. Revenue is project-based, typically calculated as a percentage of construction costs or fixed fees for specific services.

Go-to-market motion2 records

Distribution channels1 record

Marketing channels7 records

Core offering

RIOS is a global design collective providing integrated professional design services across architecture, landscape architecture, urban design, interior architecture, master planning, and a dedicated Experience Design (EXD) studio. The firm delivers project-based design solutions for entertainment campuses, corporate workplaces, sports districts, luxury residential developments, life sciences facilities, hospitality projects, and public realm spaces, serving enterprise developers, corporations, institutions, and government clients through its seven global offices.

Product overview

RIOS is a global design collective offering an integrated suite of design services rather than a single software product. The company's offerings span architecture, landscape architecture, urban design, interior architecture, master planning, and experience design (EXD). Their work is organized around key specializations including Film and Television Studios Design, Sports Districts, Workplace Strategy, Life Sciences Facilities, and Residential Architecture. Projects include entertainment campuses (Echelon Studios, One Beverly Hills), cultural venues (Hollywood Bowl, Lynn Wyatt Square), workplace interiors (Sony Music Publishing, Spotify Campus), and public spaces (Grand Park, ROW DTLA). With 300 team members across offices in Los Angeles, Singapore, Shanghai, London, Austin, and Boulder, RIOS operates as a multi-disciplinary practice that merges architecture and landscape to create destinations that spark wonder.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Architecture Services RIOS provides architectural design services across commercial, civic, hospitality, residential, cultural, and educational sectors, creating buildings that integrate with landscape and urban contexts.
• Landscape Architecture RIOS delivers landscape architectural expertise from urban villages to city parks, creating exuberant, multisensory, and dynamic landscapes that connect people and nature.
• Urban Design RIOS provides urban design services focusing on pedestrian-friendly design, strategic landmark enhancement, and mixed-income housing integration to create vibrant neighborhoods.
• Interior Architecture RIOS offers interior architecture services that blend architectural form, design excellence, and aesthetic sophistication to create modern workplaces and living spaces.
• Master Planning RIOS provides multi-phase master planning that guides long-term district development, balancing early activation with bold transformation.
• Experience Design (EXD) RIOS's Experience Design studio creates interconnected, multi-sensory journeys that connect users with brands, spaces, and narratives through architecture, digital media, interaction design, and storytelling.
• Film and Television Studios Design RIOS specializes in media, entertainment, and soundstage design, transforming studios into content creation campuses with soundstages, production facilities, and creative workspaces.
• Sports Districts RIOS revitalizes sports venues and their mixed-use districts into thriving 365-day destinations, combining architecture, landscape, urban planning, and experiential design.
• Workplace Strategy RIOS provides workplace strategy services with data-driven design and planning approaches that adapt to organizational evolution and cultural capture.
• Life Sciences Facilities RIOS designs transformative research facilities that combine amenities for refreshment with high-performance laboratory environments, creating energetic campuses.
• Residential Architecture RIOS's residential practice explores integration of architecture, interior design, landscape, and product to define lifestyles, creating homes expertly suited to each client.
• Video Production RIOS offers video production services as part of their design process, creating visual documentation of projects and design concepts.

Quantifiable outcome

• 91% retail occupancy achieved at ROW DTLA compared to 65% in comparable districts through placemaking strategy
• +4 more outcomes

Named customers16 records

Segments7 records

Ideal customer profiles5 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Feature4 records

Partnerships

Nine partnerships are on record, tiered core, flagship and major.

• Foster + PartnerscoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerCollaboration on One Beverly Hills project where RIOS leads landscape architecture while Foster + Partners serves as the primary architecture firm for the 17.5-acre mixed-use development including Aman hotel and botanical gardens.
• Kerry Hill Architects (KHA)coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerCollaboration on One Beverly Hills project for the design of Aman-branded residential towers. RIOS handles landscape architecture while KHA designs the residential towers.
• United Center Joint VentureflagshipStrategic or Co-development PartnerClient and partner for The 1901 Project, a $7 billion transformative mixed-use development master planned by RIOS around the United Center in Chicago.
• Field OperationscoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerLandscape architect of record for The 1901 Project, collaborating with RIOS on the $7 billion Chicago West Side development.
• Site DesigncoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerLandscape architecture firm serving as AOR alongside Field Operations on The 1901 Project master plan.
• Meinhardt GroupmajorStrategic or Co-development PartnerInternational engineering consortium member with RIOS and Cushman & Wakefield for the Musi Riverfront Development Project in Hyderabad, India.
• Cushman & WakefieldmajorStrategic or Co-development PartnerInternational consortium member with RIOS and Meinhardt Group for the Musi Riverfront Development Project Phase 1 (estimated Rs 7,000 crore).
• WSDG (Walters-Storyk Design Group)coreTechnology or IntegrationStudio designer and acoustician collaborating with RIOS on Spotify's Mateo campus to engineer sound isolation and technical specifications for podcast studios.
• Cloud 11majorStrategic or Co-development PartnerRIOS partnered with Cloud 11 to create cutting-edge Creator Studios, Production Studios, and Cloud 11 Hall in Bangkok for Asian creators.

Scale indicators10 records

Recent moves7 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Direct peers

• SWA Group: Landscape architecture and urban design firm with a global footprint; comparable to RIOS's landscape practice, particularly on large-scale master plans and public realm projects.
• Foster + Partners: Large global architecture practice; partnered with RIOS on One Beverly Hills and competes for the same marquee mixed-use and cultural commissions across EMEA, Asia, and the US.
• James Corner Field Operations: Landscape architecture and urban design firm; partnered with RIOS as co-landscape architect on The 1901 Project and competes in placemaking, master planning, and large public-realm commissions.
• Snøhetta: Multidisciplinary design firm integrating architecture, landscape, and interior design at a global scale; closest analog to RIOS's integrated discipline model and shared ethos of human-centered, experience-driven design.
• Populous: Global architecture firm specializing in sports venues and entertainment districts, closely overlapping with RIOS's Sports Districts specialization and shared clients like arena operators and sports team owners.
• HKS: Architecture firm with deep experience in sports venues, hospitality, and entertainment districts; overlaps with RIOS on large-scale cultural and destination projects.

Broad incumbents

• HOK: Global AE firm with strong sports, entertainment, and workplace practices; competes for many of the same enterprise and institutional clients RIOS targets, particularly on sports venues and corporate headquarters.
• Gensler: Largest global AE firm; competes directly for corporate workplace, entertainment campus, and master-planning RFPs with significant scale advantages in staffing and global delivery.
• Perkins&Will: Large global architecture firm with strong healthcare and life sciences practices; overlaps with RIOS on Life Sciences Facilities and corporate workplace engagements.
• SOM (Skidmore, Owings & Merrill): Iconic global AE firm working across architecture, engineering, and urban planning at the largest scales; competes for many of the same trophy commissions and master-planning mandates RIOS pursues.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles13 records

Subsidiaries2 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about RIOS