Cobu | Techstars Boston 2020

Cofounded by Ben Pleat, Cobu makes it easy for residents to connect with their neighbors and neighborhood, turning apartments into homes. The company completed the Techstars Boston accelerator program in 2020. 

Too often, living in an apartment complex can be an isolating experience. Despite living just a wall or a floor away from many other people, residents don’t connect. Cobu enables authentic human relationships and builds community for residents through its mobile app and virtual community manager. 

Cobu is the Cure for Loneliness

According to a 2020 report from Cigna, 61% of the U.S. population reports feeling lonely. And as a population, we’re only getting lonelier.

Cobu founder Ben Pleat saw this statistic in action when his mother moved to Greenwich Village, a lively neighborhood that she hoped to feel at home in. “Moving to Manhattan was a lifelong dream of hers since she was a young girl in Russia,” Ben said. “But instead of taking in all she was told the city had to offer, she was cooped up in her apartment most of the time. Despite being an extreme extrovert, she could never meet a single neighbor.”

As a self-proclaimed “community fanatic” and a longtime entrepreneur in the real estate space, Ben decided to create a solution: “After seeing how much it was negatively impacting her, I thought about how we could change things.” He wanted to help his mother and the many others who suffer from loneliness, even though they’re surrounded by people. 

Cobu brings people together with user-created groups based on mutual interests and experiences. Board game fanatics can bond over virtual or in-person game nights. Someone struggling to assemble a new bookcase can ask for help from down the hall. One building even organized a virtual flower arranging party. Cobu also supplies a critical human touch that other platforms lack: a virtual community manager helps energize groups by facilitating connections among the building residents. 

A virtual flower arranging party on Cobu

COVID-19 Makes Community More Important Than Ever

Community building is more important than ever now, as the worldwide COVID-19 pandemic has forced us all to isolate ourselves in order to safeguard community health. Today, Ben and team are seeing a spike in Cobu usage. Building residents are using the app to run errands for sick or immunocompromised neighbors and to coordinate childcare for essential workers. 

One building resident even organized a balcony concert through Cobu, creating a safe yet in-person event for everyone to enjoy — a rarity during this time of social distancing. “One of our amazing community members put on a concert for her neighbors and took song requests through the Cobu app,” Ben said. “The 'Sweet Caroline' sing-along personally gave me goosebumps. It's heartwarming to see how resilient our communities are in these difficult times.”

A balcony concert on Cobu

Along with a spike in resident usage, Ben and team are seeing a surge in demand from apartment owners and managers who are asking them to launch Cobu urgently. With building amenity spaces shuttered & residents cooped up in isolation, apartment managers are turning to Cobu as a solution to virtually support their communities. “New communities are coming to us wanting to accelerate their Cobu launch dates to best support their residents in this new normal” Ben said. “Our team is more committed to supporting than ever before.”

Expanding Fast During Their Techstars Accelerator

During their three months in the Techstars Boston accelerator program, Cobu went from being available in seven buildings to over 25. They’re working with some of the biggest apartment owners and managers, who are partnering with Cobu to increase resident satisfaction and retention. They not only expanded in Boston, but also launched in Washington DC, NYC, and Atlanta, as Cobu starts to roll out nationally.

Ben is hoping to continue expanding very quickly. He wants everyone to feel like they belong in the places they call home. “One of our residents put it best,” Ben said. “She said that Cobu turned her apartment building into a place ‘that I actually love living in.’ I love that.”

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