JLL has arranged an 11,185-square-foot office lease for Orbital, an artificial intelligence (AI) platform for real estate legal work, at 40 West 25th St. in Manhattan’s Flatiron District. Orbital will relocate from a temporary shared office to occupy the entire sixth floor of the 12-story building, establishing the location as its New York City headquarters. The company also has offices in London and Los Angeles.
Founded in 2018, Orbital supports more than 250,000 property transactions each year for customers including Am Law 100 and Magic Circle law firms, alongside multinational corporations across the real estate ecosystem. Orbital combines deep real estate domain expertise with AI designed to handle the document-intensive, highly specialized legal work that underpins property transactions, with a goal of helping legal teams review, analyze and progress matters faster and with greater consistency.
JLL Spark, the corporate venture arm of JLL, was an early investor in Orbital and also participated in the company’s $60 million Series B funding round announced in January. The investment is helping accelerate Orbital’s U.S. expansion and adoption across the real estate transaction ecosystem.
“Our continued growth in the U.S. has made a flagship East Coast base essential, not simply as a place to work, but as a space where our team can build together, collaborate with customers and partners, and deepen our presence in the U.S. real estate market,” said Will Pearce, CEO and co-founder of Orbital. “40 West 25th Street gives us exactly that. New York sits at the heart of both the U.S. legal and real estate industries, making it a natural headquarters for Orbital as we continue building technology purpose-built for the asset class and reshaping how real estate transactions get done.”
JLL Vice Chairman Evan Margolin and Managing Director Valentin Stobetsky represented Orbital in the transaction. The Kaufman Leasing Company’s Grant Greenspan and Michael Kaufman represented the landlord, Kaufman Investments.
“Orbital wanted an office that could support its next phase of growth while helping the company attract and retain the right talent,” said Stobetsky. “We worked closely with the team to identify a space that met its operational needs and provided the accessibility, energy and amenities its employees value. The full floor at 40 West 25th Street delivers that ideal combination.”
40 West 25th St. is a 138,000-square-foot office building owned by a joint venture between Kaufman Investments and AXA Insurance. Planned upgrades to the property include improvements to the storefront, lobby and façade.
“Orbital’s decision to establish a presence at 40 West 25th Street reflects the growing demand we’re seeing from AI and technology-driven companies for high-quality space in established, amenity-rich neighborhoods,” said Greenspan, principal at Kaufman Leasing Company. “Flatiron and NoMad continue to be a natural fit for these firms, offering the combination of talent, transit, dining and neighborhood energy that today’s most innovative companies are looking for.”
