The lab space provider that occupies the same complex as the Boston Bruins' practice facility appears to be skating on thin ice.
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SmartLabs is ending operations at its 84K SF space at 40 Guest St. in the Boston Landing development in Brighton, the Boston Business Journal reports. The flexible lab space facility had some remaining tenants that are now searching for new space, according to BBJ.
The 40 Guest St. building also served as SmartLabs' headquarters. NB Development Group, the real estate arm of New Balance, owns the building. The Boston Landing complex features the shoemakers' headquarters as well as practice facilities for the Bruins and Celtics.
SmartLabs and NB Development didn't respond to Bisnow's requests for comment.
The closure is the latest in a series of setbacks for SmartLabs, a coworking-style lab space operator founded in 2015.
After growing quickly during the pandemic-era life sciences boom, the company began shrinking its footprint and facing legal issues after the industry's sharp downturn started in 2023. In 2024, SmartLabs closed its two Bay Area locations as part of a pullback from the West Coast.
In September 2025, BioMed Realty sued SmartLabs for "repeatedly" failing to pay rent at its 21 Erie St. location in Cambridge. The operator no longer lists that space on its website, and its entity tied to that location filed for bankruptcy in November, BBJ reported.
SmartLabs also terminated a 140K SF lease it had signed at the CambridgeSide development late last year.
The only remaining Boston-area location listed on SmartLabs' website is at 301 Binney St. in Kendall Square.
Greater Boston's lab market continues to struggle, with vacancy rates above 30%, but some signs of demand growth have emerged this year. Massachusetts-based companies raised $3.45B in venture capital in the first half of this year, up 25% year-over-year, according to MassBio. In July, JLL reported that the number of life sciences tenants looking for space in the region had increased from 28 in the first quarter to 49 in the second.
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