REX
REX is a New York-based private architecture and design firm founded by Joshua Ramus, delivering commercial towers, cultural institutions, performing arts centers, and master plans for developers, institutions, and corporations across North America, Europe, the Middle East, Asia Pacific, and Oceania.
- Company typePrivate
- Founded2000
- HeadquartersNew York, United States
- Headcount11–50
- GTM typeB2B
- OfferingServices
What REX does
REX is a New York-based architecture and design firm founded in 2000 by Joshua Ramus (originally as OMA New York, rebranded to REX in 2007). The firm delivers full-service architectural design across commercial office towers, cultural institutions, performing arts centers, libraries, museums, residential developments, and master planning projects for an international clientele of real estate developers, corporations, universities, and government entities. Headquartered in New York City with 11–50 employees, REX operates without disclosed external equity or PE backing and is founder-controlled.
The firm's technical differentiation lies in custom-engineered building envelopes and facade systems — including ultra-transparent frameless curtainwalls (IIᑜᑜ Tower), curved glass panel assemblies (2050 M Street), pleated re-cladding systems (Five Manhattan West), vertically articulated zipper balconies (205 North Quay), and double-skin facades with rotating stone louvers (Komische Oper Berlin) — paired with expertise in sustainable design, adaptive reuse, and high-performance structural solutions delivered alongside recurring engineering partners such as Arup, Magnusson Klemencic, Atelier Ten, and Transsolar.
REX generates revenue through project-based professional services fees on multi-year commissions, with individual project construction values ranging from approximately $28M (Vakko Fashion Center) to $457M (205 North Quay). The firm wins work primarily through invited design competitions and direct commissions from a small set of marquee repeat clients — most prominently Brookfield Properties and Tishman Speyer — supplemented by institutional engagements (Brown University, Al Jazeera/Qatar TV, GIPEC) and corporate end-user projects (Vakko, McDonald's, Mercedes-Benz, Activision|Blizzard). Projects span North America, Europe, the Middle East, Asia Pacific, Oceania, and Latin America.
REX firmographics
Firmographics- Name
- REX
- Legal name
- REX
- Website
- https://rex-ny.com
- Company type
- Private
- Founded year
- 2000
- Operating status
- Operating
- Headcount range
- 11–50 employees
- Short description
- REX is a New York-based private architecture and design firm founded by Joshua Ramus, delivering commercial towers, cultural institutions, performing arts centers, and master plans for developers, institutions, and corporations across North America, Europe, the Middle East, Asia Pacific, and Oceania.
- Ownership category
- akta.pro rank
Where REX is headquartered
LocationHeadquarters
- HQ city
- New York
- HQ country
- United States
- HQ region
- North America
Offices1 record
Markets served
REX business model
Business model- GTM type
- B2B
- Offering type
- Services
- Cost components
- Personnel, Operations, Technology or R&D, Marketing or Sales
Revenue model
- Architecture and Design Services: REX generates revenue through architecture and design fees for commercial, cultural, educational, and residential projects. Projects include new construction, renovations, and master planning engagements with developers, institutions, and government entities.
Pricing tiers
| Model | Billing | Price |
|---|---|---|
| Other | Multi-year contract | Project-based architecture fees |
Go-to-market motion1 record
Distribution channels1 record
Marketing channels4 records
REX product offering
Product offeringCore offering
REX is a New York-based architecture and design firm providing full-service architectural services including new construction, renovation, adaptive reuse, and master planning. The firm delivers design services across commercial office towers, cultural institutions, performing arts centers, educational facilities, mixed-use developments, and residential projects for developers, corporations, universities, and government entities worldwide.
Product overview
REX is an architecture and design firm offering comprehensive architectural services across multiple sectors. The firm's portfolio includes commercial office buildings and towers (such as IIᴑᑜ Tower, 205 North Quay, 2050 M Street, Canti-Lever House), cultural institutions (Guggenheim Museum Las Vegas, Kunsthaus Zürich Extension, Munch Museum, Calgary Central Library), performing arts centers (The Lindemann at Brown University, Perelman PAC at WTC, Komische Oper Berlin), mixed-use developments (CDMX MASH-UP Tower, Elizabeth Quay towers), and institutional projects (Vakko Fashion Center, Activision|Blizzard HQ). Projects span global locations including the US, Australia, China, Germany, Mexico, Turkey, Canada, and Norway. The firm operates as a traditional architecture practice rather than a software or technology product company.
Differentiator
Problem solved
Functional benefit
Products and services
- REX Architecture and Design Services Full-service architecture and design firm offering commercial, cultural, educational, residential, and master planning projects for enterprise clients worldwide.
- Commercial Office Tower Design Design of premium Class A office towers and headquarters for commercial real estate developers and corporate end-users (e.g., 2050 M Street, IIᴑᴑ Tower, 205 North Quay, Canti-Lever House).
- Cultural and Performing Arts Center Design Design of museums, libraries, opera houses, and performing arts centers for universities, cultural institutions, and government entities (e.g., Lindemann PAC at Brown, Perelman PAC at WTC, Komische Oper Berlin, Munch Museum, Seattle Central Library).
- Mixed-Use Development Design Design of mixed-use towers combining office, hotel, residential, and retail programs for developers (e.g., Elizabeth Quay towers in Perth, CDMX MASH-UP Tower in Mexico City).
- Master Planning and Urban Design Large-scale master planning for public and private developments including Governors Island Master Plan for GIPEC, Oslo Vestbane Cultural Hub, Songdo Landmark City Development, and Yongsan Experiment.
- Renovation and Adaptive Reuse Architecture Renovation, expansion, and adaptive reuse of existing structures including Komische Oper Berlin Expansion, Five Manhattan West Renovation, Vakko Fashion Center adaptive reuse of an abandoned hotel skeleton, and Activision|Blizzard HQ renovation.
Companies that use REX
Customer profileNamed customers9 records
Segments4 records
Ideal customer profiles3 records
REX technology and API
TechnologyTechnology focussed No
API detail
- Has API
- No
- API docs
- API detail
Core technology
AI maturity
App detail
Feature5 records
REX partnerships and signals
Strategic signalPartnerships
Ten partnerships are on record, tiered core, flagship and minor.
- FrontcoreFront is listed as a consultant on multiple REX projects including IIооо Tower, providing design consulting services for architectural projects.
- Magnusson KlemenciccoreMagnusson Klemencic provides structural engineering consulting across numerous REX projects including IIооо Tower, 205 North Quay, and cultural projects.
- ArupcoreArup provides engineering consulting on REX projects including 2050 M Street, contributing multidisciplinary technical expertise.
- Brookfield PropertiesflagshipBrookfield Properties is a repeat client commissioning multiple major projects from REX including Five Manhattan West, Farley Annex High Garden, Elizabeth Quay towers, and IIооо Tower, representing a significant strategic relationship.
- Tishman SpeyerflagshipTishman Speyer commissioned 2050 M Street and Canti-Lever House projects, representing a key client relationship.
- HassellcoreHassell serves as executive architect on 205 North Quay and Elizabeth Quay towers in collaboration with REX.
- LuxigonminorLuxigon provides architectural visualization and rendering services for REX project presentations and marketing materials.
- TranssolarcoreTranssolar provides climate engineering and sustainable design consulting on REX projects including Al Jazeera Headquarters and Kunsthaus Zürich Extension.
- Atelier TencoreAtelier Ten provides environmental engineering consulting for REX projects including The Lindemann Performing Arts Center.
- James Corner Field OperationscoreJames Corner Field Operations collaborated on Five Manhattan West project as landscape and urban design consultant.
Scale indicators3 records
Recent moves6 records
Expansion highlights4 records
REX competitors and assessment
Company assessmentDirect peers
- SANAA: SANAA is the Tokyo-based Pritzker Prize-winning practice of Kazuyo Sejima and Ryue Nishizawa. Its minimalist, innovative cultural and museum portfolio (including the Louvre-Lens, New Museum, and Grace Farms) places it in the same signature-cultural niche as REX's museum and performing arts center work.
- Snøhetta: Snøhetta is a Norway-headquartered international architecture firm with a comparable portfolio across cultural institutions, libraries, and performing arts centers. Both firms operate from a Nordic/design-forward pedigree, pursue similar institutional commissions globally, and share a multi-disciplinary approach.
- Zaha Hadid Architects: ZHA is a London-based global architecture firm known for signature parametric and curvilinear design, with comparable portfolio scope across cultural, commercial, and mixed-use commissions. REX and ZHA regularly compete in the same invited competitions for high-profile towers and cultural institutions.
- BIG (Bjarke Ingels Group): BIG is a Copenhagen/New York architecture firm with a comparable profile: signature commercial towers, cultural buildings, and a strong brand-led competition win rate. Both firms are led by a charismatic founder-principal and target the same marquee developer and institutional clients.
- OMA (Office for Metropolitan Architecture): OMA is the global firm founded by Rem Koolhaas that originally housed REX as its New York office before REX became independent in 2007. Both firms operate at the high-design end of global architecture, pursue signature cultural and commercial commissions, and compete for the same invited competitions.
- Kohn Pedersen Fox (KPF): KPF is a New York-headquartered global architecture firm specializing in signature commercial office towers and mixed-use developments. It competes directly with REX for marquee commercial commissions from the same developer client base (Brookfield, Tishman Speyer, and other global REIT/developers).
Broad incumbents
- Foster + Partners: Foster + Partners is a much larger London-based global architecture and integrated design practice with a comparable commercial tower and cultural portfolio. It competes with REX for marquee commercial commissions and operates at materially larger scale with full in-house engineering and sustainability teams.
- SOM (Skidmore, Owings & Merrill): SOM is one of the largest global architecture, engineering, and urban design firms, with deep relationships across the same commercial real estate developer clients (including Brookfield and Tishman Speyer) that REX serves. It competes for the same large commercial tower commissions but at materially larger scale.
Emerging players
- MAD Architects: MAD Architects is a Beijing-based firm led by Ma Yansong with a signature curvilinear, nature-inspired portfolio across cultural and mixed-use commissions. It overlaps with REX in the cultural and Asia-Pacific developer segments, particularly for landmark institutional projects.
- Studio Gang (Jeanne Gang): Studio Gang is a Chicago-based contemporary architecture practice known for signature cultural and civic projects (Aqua Tower, Writers Theatre, Natural History Museum extension). It competes with REX for invited cultural commissions and shares a focus on innovative structural and environmental design.
Market position
Strengths5 records
Weaknesses5 records
Competitive moat4 records
Key risks6 records
Key highlights7 records
Customer concentration
REX social profiles
Digital presenceREX financial estimates
Financial estimateRevenue estimate
Valuation estimate
REX leadership team
Management profileNumber of profiles
Profiles1 record
REX funding detail
Funding detailFunding overview
Funding rounds
Investors
Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →
REX M&A and investment
M&A and investmentM&A
Investments
M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →
Frequently asked questions about REX
What does REX do?
REX is a New York-based architecture and design firm providing full-service architectural services including new construction, renovation, adaptive reuse, and master planning. The firm delivers design services across commercial office towers, cultural institutions, performing arts centers, educational facilities, mixed-use developments, and residential projects for developers, corporations, universities, and government entities worldwide.
Is REX a public or private company?
REX is a private company. It is classified as founder individual operated bootstrapped and is currently operating.
When was REX founded?
REX was founded in 2000. It employs 11 to 50 people.
Where is REX based?
REX is headquartered in New York, United States, in the North America region.
How does REX make money?
One revenue line is on record: architecture and Design Services.
Who are REX's main competitors?
Direct peers on record are SANAA, Snøhetta, Zaha Hadid Architects, BIG (Bjarke Ingels Group), OMA (Office for Metropolitan Architecture) and Kohn Pedersen Fox (KPF). Broad incumbents are Foster + Partners and SOM (Skidmore, Owings & Merrill). Emerging players are MAD Architects and Studio Gang (Jeanne Gang).
Does REX have an API?
No public API is recorded for REX.