Danish proptech LifeX raises €7.5 million to bring co-living to European cities

Copenhagen proptech startup LifeX has secured €7.5 million in a seed round led by Cherry Ventures, the Berlin-based early stage fund, and Founders, the Copenhagen startup studio.

LifeX is one of the largest networks of co-living homes in Europe. The company organises large apartments in attractive neighborhoods, designs the interior in the popular Nordic aesthetic, provides weekly cleaning services, and does not require any rigid commitment on the part of residents. Membership is flexible, unlike traditional long-term leases.

The added bonus is the community of fellow members, who create a built-in social network for those facing a new city alone. In an unprecedented age of professional flexibility, globalised workforces, and the digital nomad, young people are moving across countries and continents to build lives around their careers.

LifeX aims to serve exactly this demographic of "expat" young professionals. The company is doing so by partnering with the employers: fast-growing startups like N26, Pleo, and Delivery Hero, who are trying to attract foreign talent and have a vested interest in making relocation as convenient as possible. LifeX apartments are currently available in Copenhagen, Berlin, London, Paris, Munich, and Vienna, with more than 300 members from over 50 countries.

Originally, though, the co-living idea came from the founders’ personal experience. LifeX co-founder Ritu Jain explained: “While moving from San Francisco back to Copenhagen, Denmark we struggled to find a place to call home. In the end we decided to try and rent a big flat in the city centre, make it into a beautiful Nordic-style home and see if anyone was interested in sharing it. We told a few of our coworkers about it, and the first home was full in a matter of days. That was just two years ago. Now we have more than 50 co-living homes in six European cities, a thriving and happy community of international members. We’re planning to grow to 80+ homes and seven cities by the end of this year.”

Indeed, the fresh funding will help the company hit those numbers. In a statement, the company said the investment will enable growth across major European cities and accelerate “investment into its community and core technology.”

In addition to the leading investors, the round also includes several European angel investors: David Helgason, founder of Unity; Hampus Jakobsson, founder of TAT; Sophia Bendz, Spotify’s first marketing head; Evan Darr, partner at Invesco; and several others. Finally, American firm TriplePoint Capital, based in Menlo Park, joined in the form of venture debt.