Getting an apartment should feel like unboxing an iPhone
Founder Curtis Wong wants a rental to greet you warmed, lit, and playing your music, and says repeating the same design is how to afford it.
Modular Building Institute · Harvard MBA Graduate & Former SpaceX Engineer Believes Affordable Housing Lies in the 'Cloud'Curtis Wong, the founder of a modular apartment startup called Cloud Apartments, is a former SpaceX engineer with a Harvard business degree. He says the idea took shape as he watched phones and cars win loyal followings. "They've created fandom because they re-defined their categories and changed what we know to be a phone and a car," Wong says. "We want to do that with Cloud Apartments."
That goal comes down to the move-in experience he wants. "Getting a new apartment should be as exciting as unboxing the newest iPhone," Wong says.
In his design, a renter enters and meets a wall panel for lights, sound, heating and cooling. The renter lists tastes in temperature, light and music, and the home sets up daily patterns. Wong pictures someone returning from work to rooms already warmed or cooled, lights on, shades lifted, and a playlist or show starting on its own. The intent, he says, is that arrival takes no work, and departure lets the home settle into a low energy mode.
The polished arrival is the product, Wong argues, and repetition is how to afford it. He acknowledges many people hear standardization as an unwelcome term, yet he says it sits behind beloved products. "[With standardization], we can drive up quality and drive down costs pretty dramatically," Wong says. That link matters because cost decides whether homes exist at all. "Housing doesn't get built unless it pencils. Cost is everything," he says.
So Cloud units repeat the same interior, with quiet walls, compact plans, a balcony that joins the living area, built in speakers, and sustainable materials. Built the same way many times in a factory, Wong argues, the apartment can feel special to the renter and still stay cheap enough to build all over.
Questions people ask
What makes an apartment modular?
Modular construction means much of a building is made in a factory as boxlike sections, called modules, complete with kitchens, bathrooms, wiring, and finishes. The modules are trucked to the site, lifted by crane, and connected to each other and to utilities. Because work happens indoors on a production line, it can be faster and more consistent than building everything outdoors.
How does an apartment learn my routine?
The apartment works like a set of smart controls joined in one wall panel with preset routines. The renter enters choices for heat, light, and sound once, and the software builds morning and evening scenes. It can then shift to home or away settings as the renter comes and goes.
Why would making apartments all the same lower the cost?
Standardization means building the same well tested apartment design many times instead of drawing a new one for each project. Factories get faster with repetition, bulk buying lowers material costs, and fewer custom details mean fewer errors and repairs. Wong argues that is how products like phones and cars raise quality while lowering cost.