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Welcome to the future! David Arena, head of global corporate real estate for JPMorganChase, is standing on a sweeping staircase in a soaring travertine-clad lobby addressing a crowd. Hes there to welcome visitors to the ribbon cutting of 270 Park Ave., the banking behemoth’s new global headquarters in Manhattan. Behind him, an American flag hitched to a fluted bronze mast flies vigorously (its propelled by an artificial breeze that required a remarkable amount of fine-tuning). Standing next to him are the people who helped design and build the $3 billion, 2.5 million-square-foot supertall: JPMC CEO Jamie Dimon, British architect Norman Foster, developer Rob Speyer, New York Governor Kathy Hochul, and New Age author Deepak Chopra. For the leaders at JPMC, 270 Park is a big bet on the idea that working from an office is a competitive advantage in a business landscape that is rapidly changing. New technology, a shifting regulatory landscape, and geopolitical change are all coming to bear on the future of the financial services industry. A world-class office building, they believe, will provide an anchor in a tumultuous moment, and for many years to come. Ask the team behind 270 Park and theyll tell you that the new HQ is meant to be a joyful, productive space. The goal is to make workers healthier in mind, body, and spiritand therefore equipped to do their best work efficiently and effectively. Its a vessel where abundance flows naturally, Chopra proclaimed when he took the podium after Arena. [Photo: Nigel Young, courtesy of Foster + Partners] The office of the future, built for today JPMC began plotting its headquarters seven years ago. While it remained steadfast in its vision for the future of the office, the nature of work has transformed substantially since then. The pandemic forced many people into remote work due to health and safety concerns, and once the Slack and Zoom growing pains subsided, many folks realized that they actually had better work-life balance, saved money on commuting, and just generally felt happier and healthier while working from homeall while still getting the job done. For many, the drawbacks of remote work, like less access to equipment and feeling disconnected from company culture and team members, could be solved with a hybrid arrangement. Of the people who are able to perform their duties remotely, 52% prefer hybrid work, according to a recent Gallup poll, with just 26% preferring exclusively remote work and 22% desiring fully on-site work. These shifts provoke a question many office workers ask: If an office isnt technically required in order to do the job, then what is the office for? As with all headquarters, particularly on Park Avenue, the citys glass-and-steel canyon of corporate skyscrapers, they are symbols. JPMCs new building is a symbol not only of corporate ambition but also civic aspiration. Occupying a full city block, 270 Park Ave. is the first major office building to be constructed since the COVID-19 pandemic. Its the centerpiece of a JPMC microdistrict Dimon has assembled in the heart of Midtown Manhattan. Symbolically, and practically, it depicts a vision for the future of the financial sector in New Yorkone that is as brawny and commanding as Foster + Partners formidable skyscraper, which is held aloft by a massive bronze-clad base whose columns taper into six fan-shaped forms. According to a report in The New Yorker, the base alone required more steel to build than the 52-story building that was on the site before, the elegantly proportioned and assuringly reposed Union Carbide tower by SOM architect Natalie de Blois. Arena described the building as a beacon of American strength. [Photo: Nigel Young, courtesy of Foster + Partners] An office youll never want to leave Dimon has been one of the most vocal supporters of returning to the office five days a week. His employees, however, have not always agreed. They have signed petitions asking for more flexibility, and unionization efforts are underway in response to the policy. But pushback doesnt seem to be making a difference. According to a recording obtained by Reuters of a JPMC town hall in Columbus, Ohio, Dimon responded to an employee asking about the petition: Dont give me the sh*t that work from home Friday works. Later he told CNBC that employees should respect that the company is going to decide whats good for the clients, the company, etc., not an individual. . . . And so they can get a joband Im not being meanthey can get a job elsewhere. At the press conference, Hochul praised Dimon for sticking with his cmmitment to build 270 Park during the pandemic, at a time when doom-forecasting pundits spelled crisis for Manhattans future amid a sluggish return to office and the ripple effects from less foot traffic in business districts. He said come back to the office, Ill give you a place youll never want to leave! she crowed. I wondered if she may have been alluding to the business and its relationship to the city. Her official statement said the building reaffirms New York as the worlds financial capital. Over the past few years, the financial sector, which is responsible for a quarter of the citys economy, has been shifting investment from New York and California to Sunbelt states. JPMC now employs more people in Texas than New York. Still, the bank has emphasized its commitment to New York. The opening of our new global headquarters is not only a significant investment in New York, but also a testament to our commitment to our clients and employees worldwide, Dimons statement about the opening reads. We are strengthening our ability to serve our clients and communitieslocally and globallyfor generations to come. Theres ample symbolism of this sentiment in the architecture. In his remarks, Foster described how the building is anchored into the bedrock below and that its formwhich in the skyline resembles either a slender tower or an elongated, bulky ziggurat depending on your vantage pointis derived from the urban fabric and zoning code. Ive always admired the grid, and it is inseparable from the grid, Foster remarked. Theres no computer wizardry. It is four square and rooted in tradition. In fact, 270 Park Ave. is the first project to result from the East Midtown Rezoning, a Bloomberg-era idea finalized in 2017 to attract and maintain business in the area. It also created a funding mechanism to improve the neighborhoods public realm and mandated indoor or outdoor public space for new development. At the new headquarters, this element takes the form of a leafy public plaza on Madison Avenue furnished with concrete benches, movable jet-black Bertoia chairs and Saarinen tables, and an installation by Maya Lin composed of tessellated slate-gray stone that apparently references Central Park schist. Along Park Avenue, there are long cascading steps into the building that give the illusion of a plaza but nudge passersby to keep it moving; the steps are far too shallow to sit on, unlike at the Seagram Building a couple of blocks north. Arena described 270 Parks open space and public art as our gift to the city, as though it were benevolence and not part of the deal NYC struck with JPMC to allow the company to build to an astounding 1,388 feet. Taller than the Empire State and Chrysler buildings, and with a scintillating LED light installation by the artist Leo Villareal at its crown, 270 Park is certainly making the presence of those gifts known. [Photo: Nigel Young, courtesy of Foster + Partners] The quantified workplace This idealistic vision of both JPMC and Midtownthe hive of abundance within the prosperous cityhinges on a critical element: people. The building is a recruitment and retention tool that plays into the elements that have been scientifically proven to increase quality of experience, like ample natural light and clean air, as well as amenities designed to bring individual fulfillment to employees. To that end the interiors are designed to promote social, functional, and restorative activities among all teams that will use the building, which will encompass 10,000 employees. Really you’re solving for people, Stefanie Shunk, a design director at Gensler, told me after the ribbon cutting. The firm was responsible for 1.7 million square feet of workspace spread across 30 floors of 270 Park Ave., which includes conference floors, amenity spaces, health and wellness floors, and executive suites; the firm SOM designed the buildings eight trading floors. Were all high-performing individuals now, Shunk continues. And with an Oura ring, or different devices, we’re measuring ourselves as well. So what does that mean? Mindsets have shifted to how we think about what optimizes our day. Shunk and her team conceived of the work floors from a perspective of experience density so that employees would never feel like theyre in a vast expanse or too far from amenities. The elevators on each work floor open to a double-height communal space, which resembles a café. Lactation and well-being rooms (including prayer rooms with foot baths) are located off the communal spaces. Providing sensory varietyfrom a dead-silent recharge room to an energetic shared space and everything betweenalso guided the strategy. The workspaces are flexible, built with the assumption that the business and its teams will change. Theyre constructed on raised floors, arranged on a modular grid, and the walls are demountable. We wanted this space to live over time, Shunk says. It wasn’t about a 10- or 20-year lease; this is a 100-year-plus building. While the workstations are all open, Gensler devised seating arrangements and interior details that help each individual feel like they have more personal space. Along the windows, designers dispensed with private offices so that more daylight can permeate the space. Instead, they clustered workstations in groups of two and four, reducing the number of middle seats as much as they could. People like to feel like they’re in their own space, Shunk says. We just didnt want to see a run of 8, 10, 12 desks. For people with workstations near high-traffic areas, custom glass partitions are installed so their backs are protected. The primary detail that changed dueto the pandemic was the addition of video chat rooms designed for one to two people; before, the smallest conference rooms were huddle spaces intended for four to five people. Gensler designed the video chat rooms to include virtual desktops to ease moving from their workstation to the room, and tables that are contoured to give each person in a meeting a more equitable experience on-screen. Part of the value of more of these rooms is to protect the acoustical environment in the open areas. The reality of work today is that even if you are in the office, youre likely working with someone who is not there and so video calls are now routine. What really changed from the pandemic is we care so much more about the individual and designing to the outer edges of what people need, Shunk says. It used to be Design for the 80%, and now its Lets solve for the majority. [Photo: Nigel Young, courtesy of Foster + Partners] A one-stop-shop for everyone Foster describes the building as a city within a city where presumably every activity someone might need to do throughout the day can happen within 270 Parks walls. One space that JPMC is particularly proud of is The Exchange, a three-story community hub Foster + Partners designed. It includes an expansive space for parties and corporate gatherings, plus a Danny Meyer-curated food hall with 19 restaurants and cafés (one is in an Airstream and another is in what looks like a classic green NYC newsstand). Foster + Partners designed a lavish client center at the very top of the building, with 360-degree views of the city. As I watched the video fly-through of the buildings interior that played during the ribbon-cutting ceremony, I was wowed by the wealth of spaces and the lengths the real estate team took to make the office come off as hospitable. I would very much like to work from a plant-filled office, with daylight and views of the metropolis. (Although I could do without the mandatory biometric scanning employees will need to do to enter the building; instead of badges, JPMC will use their palm or fingerprint.) The concentration of amenities and activities within the building reminded me of another architect who frequently spoke of his developments as a city within a city: John Portman, who constructed epically scaled hotels in beleaguered downtowns to spark economic development. But Midtown Manhattan now is not Atlanta in 1985. This August, pedestrian activity in the city topped pre-pandemic levels. One of the great pleasures of being in New York City is experiencing everything it offers in its entirety, not merely a microcosm designed in its image to keep people in a single location. According to Chopra, achieving an abundance mindset involves reframing your thoughts to focus on everything you currently have instead of obsessing over what you lack. In the case of JPMC, thats likely the freedom to work remotely. Employees are steadily moving into 270 Park, with full occupancy expected by the end of the year. As they adjust to their new office, they will determine whether perks like imported taps that pour a perfect pint of Guiness, an app that enables them to order lunch to their desks, a signature scent piped into the air, and lighting that adjusts with circadian rhythms are the acts of corporate generosity or hallmarks of a gilded cage.
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E-Commerce
I slip on a pair of Nike running shoes. I clip a chunk of metal to the heel, which wraps around my lower leg like a shin guard. The battery goes on last, hugging it all like a high ankle bracelet. In all of 30 seconds, Ive turned my legs into robots. I’m wearing Nikes new exoskeleton footwear, dubbed Project Amplify. My legs feel heavier for sure. But with each step, theres a little kick in my heel. Like a cherry bomb exploding underfoot. And when it launches next year under a new name for an undisclosed price, Project Amplify will power runs up to 10 kilometers long on a single charge, increasing your energy output by 15% to 20% along the way. Think of it as an ebike for your feet, says Michael Donaghu, a VP at Nike who leads the Project Amplify team. [Photo: Nike] The long road toward amplification Exoskeletons offer the possibility to completely reimagine human movement, so it might not be surprising to learn that Nike has been pursuing the possibilities of exoskeletons for 14 years. As Donaghu explains, he began at Nike decades ago working for the cofounder mad scientist running coach Bill Bowerman himself, who had a penchant for saying that an ounce on your foot was worth a pound on your back. As such, much of Nike innovation is about subtractioneliminating weight to ensure the product doesnt get in the way of your body. Nikes marathon-busting Vaporfly shoes offered some rebuttal to this idea, as Nike studied the possibilities of energy return, developing carbon plates and foams that could give back an extra 4% of your stride. What if, instead of playing subtraction, we could give you more? Donaghu muses. And exoskeleton research was right along these lines, albeit taken to the extreme. The problem a decade ago, however, was that the components needed for robotic assistance never quite added up. The technology was too heavy, or not powerful enough, Donaghu says. The theory just didn’t play out in practice. Rather than dissuading Nike, Donaghu says it kept the company focused on the longer gameand every once in a while, a new PhD would walk through the doors and reignite interest in the idea, just to keep the coals burning. I think you can have a lot of shared intuition as a group of designers and researchers, and sometimes technology just isn’t ready to do it, or you’re not smart enough to figure it out, he says. By 2021, the team opted to try again in earnest, dedicating full-time researchers to the project longer term. Quite a few developments helped. Algorithms, sensors, and microprocessors had all matured. But most of all, Donaghu credits the drone industry, fueled by a new wave of lightweight, high-RPM motors, with providing one of the most fundamental components of Project Amplify. That mass adoption made smaller, more energy-dense motors of the size that you would want to put on a body, he says. [Photo: Nike] Designing the first consumer-friendly exoskeleton The design of Project Amplify is inspired by the human body. Developed in partnership with Dephy, it’s essentially a robotic version of your Achilles tendonthe connection between your calf muscles and heel that powers running and jumping. As you walk, onboard sensors track your gait and attempt to power your step at just the right moment. Donaghu likens the challenge to pushing someone on a swing. Too early, it feels weird. Too late, and its pointless. The task requires accuracy in the milliseconds, while accommodating for the fact that everyones gait is a little different. [Photo: Nike] Nike hasnt mastered this work yet. As I take my first jog in Project Amplify, I find myself fighting the machine. I dont feel puppeted, as I have with larger exoskeletons in the past, but I dont feel like a super version of myself, either. Instead, theres a bit too much pressure on my shin, and my heel slips slightly out of the shoe. Allow me to admit, its a bit infantilizing to find yourself struggling to run at Nike HQ, and Im admittedly despondent when another tester trying Amplify for the first time flies by me effortlessly. Tweaking the level of support and response time (simple buttons and sliders in an app) does help. And while Im still a bit awkward, and the footwear never feels weightless, they also got my ass up a 500-foot training hill, leaving me reasonably but not devastatingly winded. For me, an elite running shoe feels like Im running on flubber, and an e-bike can straight-up feel like driving a motorcycle. I wanted one sensation or the other in a way that wasnt quite there yet in Project Amplify. But taking it off? A dream! All you do is pull a tab on the heel, and the robot ulatches. Im reminded of the handful of people necessary for me to don an exoskeleton pant made with Arcteryx. Meanwhile, Nike really has developed something that I believe most people could slip on with relative ease. [Photo: Nike] Polishing Amplify for launch Despite the fact that hundreds of people have taken more than 2.4 million steps with Project Amplify, Donaghu knows the product isnt fully cooked yet, and hes even a bit self-conscious as the team shares a platform theyve yet to perfect with journalists such as myself. Could we already be in the market right now? Yeah, we actually are getting really good functional testing results and feedback from most people. It just doesn’t meet the threshold of, like, is it swoosh-worthy yet? he says. I just think we have a responsibility to make sure that this thing ends up being really aspirational. Like, it really disappears visually. Functionally, it’s just something that’s there helping you. And if we can’t get to that threshold, then for some of us, it’s not going to be good enough. For now, Nike reaching that threshold means continuing to tweak the algorithms so that people like me dont face a learning curve when using the product. He also suggests that the team still has levers to pull to lighten the technology while increasing its power output. And, of course, it has to look fire on your foot. To this aim, the design team has developed a mockup of Project Amplify thats more svelt, graceful, and all-around Nike-vibing than the chunkier prototypes theyve built thus far. Now its just up to the poor engineering team to bring that vision to life. As for where Project Amplify fits in the market, its too much power for competitive sport, but perfect for recreation. Longer term, Nikes own CEO isnt making any bold predictions about revenue potential or market size, but the writing is on the wall that the age of exoskeletons is coming. That’s especially for those aging with lower mobilitythese technologies will revolutionize quality of life. There are so many ways that it doesn’t fit perfectly into our business model. It’s a bigger swing, says Donaghu, who a few beats later admits that it feels wonderful to be making such a swing, to launch a product on the true edge of the companys capabilities. That’s Nike at its best, when we’re just being a little more bold to say we’re responsible for trying to change this industry and just help people move by and large. What are all the things that we’re not releasing that would do that?
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E-Commerce
NASA just handed Elon Musk a very public reality checkand virtually threw its own moon plans into the trashcan, although the U.S. space agency wont be admitting that. SpaceX isn’t necessarily the shoo-in to land the first Americans on the moon since the Apollo 17 mission 52 years ago. Instead, NASA is opening the contract to other companies, like Jeff Bezoss Blue Origin and Lockheed Martin. While this doesnt mean that SpaceX wont get it, its the agencys way of slamming SpaceX for its delays and lack of focus on the lunar program. Reopening the marquee Artemis crewed landing contract to competition is an admission that the Starship wont be ready on time. Americas return to the lunar surface needs a plan B. Its a big shift that weakens SpaceXs grip, yes, but also rattles Artemis, andcruciallytilts the new space race toward China. Im in the process of opening that contract up, NASAs acting chief Sean Duffy said on Fox & Friends, pointing squarely to Starships mounting schedule slips. He added that he expects companies like Blue Origin and possibly others to bid, putting Jeff Bezoss Blue Moon lander back in contention two years before the alleged scheduled landing date. NASA also told SpaceX and Blue Origin to deliver accelerated landing plans by October 29, and it will solicit proposals from the wider industry to increase the cadence of moon missions, a NASA spokesperson said. Blue Origin is widely expected to compete; Lockheed Martin has already convened an industry team to respond. As expected, Musk is enraged. He didnt need to convene anything to respond on X: The person responsible for Americas space program cant have a 2 digit IQ, he said in response to Duffy. Delays everywhere To recap: The Artemis program is a multi-contractor, multibillion-dollar campaign to restore a sustained U.S. presence on the moon. Artemis III is the mission that, if it doesnt get cancelled, will put American boots back on the surface of the moon. It is a critical step for America to remain ahead of the new space race with China, which aims to colonize the solar system in this century. Whoever gets to the moon first and establishes the first base in its south polewhere water is abundant for life and, more importantly, the cooking of new rocket fuel to launch ships to Mars and beyondwill have the advantage for the next few decades. Artemis III was planned for 2027 with SpaceXs Starship as the human landing system (HLS). This is how it works: Boeings Space Launch System (SLS) rocket launches four astronauts in Lockheed Martins Orion to lunar orbit; SpaceXs Starship HLS then docks with Orion and ferries astronauts from lunar orbit to the surface and back. That last piecethe lunar Starshipis the fulcrum. NASAs own advisers now say that the 2027 date could slip years due to SpaceXs competing priorities. The agency has grown uneasy with SpaceXs lack of progress on lunar-lander-specific milestones. Internally and publicly, Musk insists the company is moving like lightning compared to the rest of the space industry. But lightning alone doesnt meet Artemiss deadlines. Of course, nobody else in the program, including Boeings SLS and Lockheed Martins Orion, is meeting the deadlines either, but lets discuss that later. SpaceXs broader Starship campaignrapid, testtofailure flights to mature a super heavylift systemmatters for Starlink and Mars. The lunar variant is a tougher ask. As NASA program veterans point out, the HLS Starship needs to be markedly different from the prototypes flying today, then cleared for astronaut operationsa stretch for any organization on tight timelines. Meanwhile, the White House wants the moon landing done before January 2029, adding political pressure to an already complex schedule. Artemis IIthe 10day crewed loop around the moon that sets up Artemis IIIremains on track for April and could even get moved to February, NASA officials have said. Duffy seems to imply that Artemis IIIs landing hinges on HLS being ready, but blaming Musk alone ignores the larger truth: The program is struggling on multiple fronts. The SLS core rocket is expendable and costs more than $4 billion per launchan eyewatering figure that undermines longterm cadence like he says NASA needs. Lockheed Martins Orion capsule suffered significant heat shield erosion on Artemis Is reentry. Not even the lunar suits are ready. NASAs Inspector General reports tally roughly $4.3 billion in SLS overages and about three years of delays. And the programs architecturemany contractors, many interfaces, shifting prioritiesis a recipe for disaster. Even former NASA administrator Mike Griffin called the Artemis program excessively complex with an unrealistic price tag. Advantage China While the U.S. wrangles contracts, hardware, and schedules, Beijing is seemingly executing to plan. China has already completed a full landing-and-ascent test of its crewed lunar lander, Lanyue (embrace the moon), a vehicle that is closer to Apollos lunar module than NASAs own program. While Apollos lunar module had two sectionsthe main engine to land on the moon and its cockpit, with a propulsion system to take off from the moon once the mission is doneLanyue is one single spaceship. Like Apollo, it is designed to carry two Chinese astronauts between lunar orbit and the surface, supporting life support, power, and data for the surface stay. It is not as ambitious as Blue Moon or Starship HLS, but Beijing has taken the practical, less problematic route. The Long March 10 heavylift rocketthe equivalent to NASAs Saturn V or its SLSis advancing according to officials, who insist that the overall development of crewed lunar missions is progressing smoothly. Chinas target is to put astronauts on the moon before 2030, which is actually earlier than its original projections. The CNSAChinese National Space Administrationis going further and faster than NASAs plans at this point. One shocking example: It has already deployed multiple satellites in lunar orbit to support its manned missions and its future base in the moons South Pole, which Beijing says will be operating in 2035. By 2050, the South China Morning Post reports, the CNSA expects to have bases in the South Pole, the lunar equator, and the far side of the moon. And thas worrying for the United States and its flagging space supremacy. This isn’t flagplanting theater like in the 1960s. The South Poles permanently shadowed craters harbor large deposits of water ice. Ice means drinkable water, breathable oxygen, and rocket propellanteverything you need for permanent basing and a new space economy that will make trillions of dollars. The first nation to stand up reliable access to polar ice writes the rules of that economy. Any country that wants to establish mining and manufacturing on the moon or in asteroids on Earths orbit, will need a strategic permanent base on our satellite. From there, you could theoretically take over the entire solar system with an ease that you would not have from Earth. This is because launching a spacecraft from the moon takes a lot fewer resources than launching from our planet, where you have to counter 10 times the gravity force. Its a race the U.S. cant afford to lose and yet, each Artemis delay shifts the space race eastward. While NASAs decision to open the Artemis III landing contract is a necessary one, it is also an admission that the current plan wont land on schedule. In fact, Duffy himself said that it wont fly until 2028, which NASA confirmed. You can say that a 2028 launch still gives the U.S. two years before China’s mission but, since Artemis’s history can be measured in schedule setbacks, at this point its very hard to believe that the calendar-wreaking havoc is over. We are going to need a series of miracles for that to work out and we just cant rush astronaut safety. But the biggest problem for NASA is that, today, China is marching on with a centralized, fully state-backed, long-term program to put taikonauts on the moon before the end of the decade, like Apollo once did. While NASA’s decision was a necessary one, if the U.S. wants to lead in the moontoMars-and-beyond era, it must lock an operational lander as soon as possible, fix existing and future hardware issues in record time, and increase mission cadence. Right nownot some time later in the decade. Otherwise, the first footprints of this centurys lunar age will belong to Beijing.
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