More than 2,100 spaces; 20,000 square meters and five floors in the heart of 22@. The new Aticco Diagrame has begun operating as the largest coworking space in Southern Europe, already with an occupancy of 75%. This figure translates into more than 1,600 workers, distributed among 40 companies. Added to these are freelancers, bringing the total to 70 companies working from the building on Pere IV street.
Among the companies, some stand out: "There are six unicorns," emphasizes Aticco's CEO, Gabriel Espín. These companies, valued at over a billion dollars, are international companies that have decided to operate from Aticco in Barcelona, and include names such as the French Back Market.
"The companies in the building have raised 4 billion euros in investment and have a valuation of 20 billion euros," highlights Espín. Globally, together they employ 6,000 workers, and among them are already those working from Diagrame, nestled in a 22@ that gains a new player for its innovation ecosystem.
"This building reinforces the Barcelona we want to be," summarized the executive director of Business and Entrepreneurship at Barcelona Activa, Itziar Blasco, at the inauguration: "An open Barcelona that is committed to entrepreneurship and innovation," and that has contributed to positioning the city as the first hub in Southern Europe.
While initiatives like Aticco contribute to building Barcelona's ecosystem, Barcelona and its ecosystem contribute to Aticco, as Espín points out. "It's a city that attracts. When an international company sets up its offices in Barcelona, it knows it will attract talent. It's a plus for companies."
In this context, nearly half of the people working from the coworking space are from outside the city. This figure also applies to companies: 50% of those at Diagrame are international, and include companies of all sizes. "There are companies from 500 people to sole proprietorships." The heterogeneity is also seen in the type of companies, "from the most innovative to traditional companies, and from all sectors."
"We like it that way. It's what makes the magic of Aticco spaces," Espín defends. At Diagrame, they include essential workspaces, meeting rooms, event spaces for up to 200 people, and four terraces with city views. But there are also spaces like a gym, pickleball courts, a wellness room for massages, a canteen, a gaming area, a lactation room, a rooftop pool, or even a slide to reach the main floor.
With all these spaces, the building has opened after an investment of nearly five million euros following an agreement with the property owner, the real estate investment firm Patrizia, with whom Aticco maintains a management agreement through which the company operates the space and shares revenue with the property.
To energize these spaces, Aticco organizes weekly activities, ranging from regular yoga classes to pottery workshops. All with the aim of "generating community and synergies among coworkers," as highlighted by the company's operations director, Naiara Chaler. These dynamics interrelate with other branches of the group, ranging from AticcoVentures investments to the AticcoLab startup accelerator.
Precisely this community generated by the coworkings was the germ of what is now Aticco. Ten years ago, Espín was promoting a marketplace for recycled plastic, and he went to develop it in a shared workspace, where he was nourished by the community and bet on this concept, along with Juan Carlos Morales and Franz Pallarés.
A decade later, the group has over a hundred employees, invoiced 20 million euros in 2025, and expects to scale up to 30 million this 2026. With more than 86,000 square meters, it has become the second largest operator in Spain, with coworkings in Barcelona, Madrid, Valencia, and, soon, Lisbon. This will be the first step outside Spain but, probably, not the last: "We are eager to go out and go to Europe."