HSBC’s relocation to The Spiral in Hudson Yards was driven by a bold ambition: to create the most sustainable, inclusive and technologically advanced workplace in New York City and across its global portfolio. M Moser led the integrated design and delivery, providing services from architecture and interior design to engineering, sustainability, branding and smart building technology.

The design reimagines the corporate headquarters as a living system—one that learns, adapts and empowers. It challenges traditional norms with a vertically connected five-floor hub that promotes interaction and agility while maximizing daylight, greenery and outdoor access through 13,000 sq ft of landscaped terraces. Features like bleacher seating, wellness zones, flexible event spaces and garden-adjacent staircases offer moments of delight, comfort and community. From ambient quiet zones to spontaneous collaboration areas, the workplace supports the full spectrum of human needs and experiences.

At its core, the space is a testbed for innovation. A fully integrated digital twin enables real-time measurement, prediction and iteration of HSBC’s workplace, empowering both users and facility managers to make informed, adaptive choices. Centrally located dashboards allow employees to engage with their environment: lighting, temperature, occupancy and air quality—ushering in a new era of transparent, human-responsive design.

Creatively, the space blends architectural and brand storytelling. The interiors reflect an ‘elevated industrial’ language—concrete, corten steel, warm metals and jewel-toned accents—that echoes The Spiral’s materiality while expressing HSBC’s identity. Interior cascades mimic the building’s exterior terraces, reinforcing a sense of flow and vertical connectivity.

Designed for Zero Carbon construction and operations, and targeting certifications including WELL, LEED, RESET, GUDC and BLUE, the project reduced energy usage by 30%, improved acoustics and visual comfort and incorporates water collection systems to nourish layered landscaping. Over 70% of furniture contributes to carbon reduction goals, and materials were locally sourced to reduce embodied emissions.

Since completion, employee attendance has doubled from 40% to 80%. The workplace is drawing people in—not by mandate, but as a magnet of merit. By aligning people, planet and performance, this headquarters sets a new benchmark for what’s possible in commercial design. It offers a timeless yet future-forward model that inspires, includes and endures