San Francisco’s struggling commercial real estate market just got a major boost, thanks to one of AI’s fastest-growing startups. Harvey AI, fresh off a $300 million funding round, is gearing up for a big downtown move that signals both expansion and optimism in the tech-driven legal sector.
In a strong sign of rebounding confidence in San Francisco’s downtown real estate, Harvey AI — a rapidly rising artificial intelligence startup focused on legal solutions — is set to relocate to a significantly larger office space this fall. The company, which recently raised a staggering $300 million at a $5 billion valuation, is finalizing a lease for 92,000 square feet at 201 Third Street, sources familiar with the deal told the Chronicle.
Though the lease hasn’t been officially confirmed by Kilroy Realty Corp., the Los Angeles-based landlord behind the building, insiders say the agreement is virtually complete. A spokesperson for Harvey confirmed the move will happen “later this fall,” although they declined to disclose lease specifics.
Key Takeaways:
- Harvey AI is upgrading from 30K to 92K sq. ft. in downtown San Francisco.
- The move follows a $300M Series E round valuing the startup at $5B.
- Kilroy Realty’s biggest office deal in years, giving the S.F. real estate market a much-needed boost.
- New leadership onboard: Former Twitter/X and Stripe execs hired to lead engineering and business growth.
- AI office leasing in Bay Area has more than doubled in just 2.5 years.
Currently operating out of a 30,000-square-foot office at 575 Market Street, Harvey had been scouting for a larger home for months. It nearly signed at 525 Market Street but ultimately landed on the Third Street location, placing it near the Moscone Center and the Museum of Modern Art — prime real estate in the Yerba Buena district.
This relocation not only reflects the company’s aggressive growth strategy but also reinforces San Francisco’s slow but noticeable commercial real estate recovery, which has been largely driven by the surging AI sector.
“While we don’t share lease details or specific hiring targets, the move will support both our San Francisco growth goals and our objective of building a great connected culture across our teams and a space where we can host Harvey customers,” the company said in a statement.
The office expansion comes on the heels of major internal developments. Harvey recently appointed Siva Gurumurthy, former head of engineering at Twitter (now X), as Chief Technology Officer, and John Haddock, a fintech veteran from Stripe, as Chief Business Officer. Both leaders are expected to ramp up hiring in 2025.
Founded in 2022 by Winston Weinberg, a former antitrust litigator, and Gabriel Pereyra, previously with DeepMind and Meta, Harvey AI quickly made waves in the legal tech space. Its AI platform is designed to assist lawyers with tasks like contract review, legal research, and case preparation — and it’s been catching the attention of major investors like Sequoia Capital, OpenAI, Kleiner Perkins, and Coatue.
The new lease also marks a major win for Kilroy Realty. Until now, its largest deal in San Francisco since 2019 had been a 57,000-square-foot lease renewal by Amplitude. In fact, Kilroy reported that as of March 31, 11% of its space — or 1.9 million square feet — was still available for sublease, much of it concentrated in the Bay Area.
But things may be shifting.
According to real estate firm CBRE, San Francisco is on track to see its strongest year of office leasing since 2019, when 12.6 million square feet was taken up. Meanwhile, JLL research shows the total office footprint leased by AI companies in the Bay Area has more than doubled — from 4.8 million square feet to 10.8 million — in just two and a half years.
Harvey’s move is not just about floor space. It’s about momentum. It’s about telling investors, clients, and job seekers alike: “We’re growing. We’re serious. And we’re here to stay.”
The startup’s name — inspired by the quick-thinking legal ace from the TV show Suits — now seems more than fitting. Like its namesake, Harvey AI is playing to win.