The Canada Pension Plan Investment Board and Greystar Real Estate Partners have joined forces as part of a new joint venture armed with $1.2B in equity in pursuit of life sciences real estate opportunities in the U.S. The partnership plans to develop Class-A life sciences office and lab buildings “in leading U.S. life science markets” with Greystar, which traditionally focuses on multifamily properties, operating the portfolio.

"The investment management and development platform Greystar has built in the U.S. is unmatched, and the opportunities in life sciences offer another sector where we can build an in-house team of experts and help match the supply with the demand," Greystar founder, Chairman and CEO Bob Faith said in a statement.

The joint venture has already made its first move, acquiring 74M, a 468K SF, 18-story office and lab development in Somerville, Massachusetts, near East Cambridge, set to break ground later this year.

The announcement comes after a record-shattering quarter of funding in the sector, per a new CBRE report. Venture capital funding hit a quarterly record of $10B, rents across the country's top markets have shot up 10% or more in the last year and demand for new space has grown 34% across all major markets in the past year alone.

The Canada Pension Plan Investment Board, or CPP Investments, is a professional investment management organization that manages the wealth of more than 20 million contributors, representing $497B in assets.