Rob Speyer

When Speyer took over the top post at his family firm a decade ago, he took on a 98.3 million-square-foot portfolio, including more than 50 million square feet in North America, more than 17 million square feet in China and more than 12 million square feet in India.

Yet he’s shown little fear in making big development bets, particularly in New York City. The firm continues to shepherd building icons such as the MetLife Building and Rockefeller Center through turbulent office markets.

Not everything has gone to plan. Speyer pushed his firm into the proptech market, including backing Latch, a startup in the door lock sector. Latch struggled for years, resulting in layoffs and issues with financial reporting before rebranding as Door.com in 2023.

Maybe no project better represents the long arc of development for Tishman than the Spiral in Hudson Yards. Speyer had his requisite parcels for 66 Hudson Boulevard in 2014, but needed another four years to snag the air rights, too.

The 1,000-foot-tall glass-facade office tower opened in 2023, in the midst of the pandemic. But leasing for the 2.8-million-square-foot behemoth has been undaunted by the office upheaval, hitting 94 percent occupancy a year ago. Not bad for a former metro reporter for the New York Daily News.