Apex, Tribeca

The Apex is the first phase of Tribeca, a 1.1 million square foot mixed-use development for Reef Group that brings science, housing and public space to the Regent’s Canal. Designed as a flexible hub for emerging biotech companies, the building provides six floors of laboratories, write-up areas and social space managed by The Crick Institute and the London Bioscience Innovation Centre.

Conceived as a modern warehouse, the deep brick façade curves along the canal and is punctuated by large windows with inset terraces. Above, two upper floors are set back behind vertical fins, creating a generous planted roof terrace with views over King’s Cross.

Internally, a double-height reception connects street and canal levels, with a café overlooking the water. The building’s basement walls use unfired earth blocks made from site-excavated soil — a collaboration with brickmaker HG Matthews that achieves a 90% reduction in embodied carbon compared with standard concrete blocks.

The Apex demonstrates how design innovation and scientific research can coexist within a robust urban architecture rooted in place and material honesty.