186: James von Klemperer, President & Design Principal of Kohn Pedersen Fox

When James von Klemperer joined Kohn Pedersen Fox, the firm was still early in its story: growing quickly, defining its culture, and creating real opportunity for young architects. Today, the firm has reached 50 years in business, with hundreds of employees across nine global offices, and James has helped carry forward a culture built around authorship, opportunity, and the belief that great architecture is never the work of a single voice.

In this week’s conversation, James walks Rens through the moments shaping KPF’s legacy, from its early founders to its expansion into London and Asia, where the firm has designed across some of the world’s densest and most complex cities. He explains how KPF’s work is rooted in connection: between buildings and streets, towers and transit, public space and private development, and architecture and the larger life of the community. This ideology runs through projects like One Vanderbilt in New York, Lotte World Tower in Seoul, Waterline in Austin, and Changi Airport’s Terminal 5 in Singapore.

James also shares what it takes to lead a global architecture firm without stepping away from design itself. KPF’s culture, as he describes it, is still shaped by architects who design, lead, teach, debate, and stay close to the forces changing cities around the world. From succession and authorship, to AI, agility, public-private partnerships, and the future of urban density, today’s episode offers a rare look inside of architecture’s most influential visionaries.