HUMANS OF LIFT99 IS A SERIES OF STORIES FROM LIFT99 MEMBERS, HIGHLIGHTING THE INSPIRING PEOPLE WE SEE AROUND US EVERY DAY.
NOT ALL OF US ARE FOUNDERS (YET), OR EVEN STARTUPPERS,
BUT WE ALL HAVE A STORY TO TELL OR A SKILL TO SHARE
- IT’S WHAT MAKES OUR COMMUNITY AS AMAZING AS IT IS.
“Highs are rare, but that’s why they mean so much.”
Rasmus Merirand grew up in Kakumäe as a totally normal kid — playing with neighborhood friends, play-fighting, gaming, and asking endless questions. Curiosity and a drive to understand how things work defined him from the start, and it made him become the youngest member of the Estonian Founders Society in history! (In fairness, he couldn’t be accepted when he was still underage.)
Early Entrepreneurial Spark
At six, he sold all his toys at a local fair — and refused to haggle. By 13, he had fallen down a Wikipedia “rabbit hole,” discovered dropshipping, and began experimenting with real projects. Money was never the main motivator; learning and trying things out was.
In 8th grade, reading about Markus Villig and listening to all his talks inspired him to organize a student competition across Estonian schools during COVID-19. Over 800 students joined — about 10% of the country’s students. That experience gave him confidence: you can create something meaningful from scratch.
Internships, Camps, and Early Skills
Rasmus interned at YuMuuv and Salv, deliberately focusing on sales and learning how businesses grow. A major boost came from the Hüppelaud youth entrepreneurship camp, where startup founders shared daily insights. There, he built his first productivity software prototype and confirmed that he wanted to start his own company.
The Birth of DoBu
DoBu grew from a dusty air vent at his home and a friend’s home-buying problem into an AI-powered platform that automates after-sales client communication and warranty management for residential real estate developers.
DoBu transforms the homeowner experience. Home-specific AI chatbot answers technical questions based on documentation, maintenance reminders for homeowners, developers can set maintenance reminders linked to warranties, warranty claims are categorized and routed automatically, and homeowners get real-time status of all claims.
“You have all these manuals and documents - hundreds of papers - but no one reads them.” explains Rasmus, “DoBu answers homeowners’ questions in real time based on the specific home. That saves precious time for both the homeowner and the developer.”
“You have all these manuals and documents - hundreds of papers - but no one reads them.”
Today, DoBu is already a market standard: 50% of upcoming residential developments in Estonia and 25% in Latvia use it.
First Paying Client
Landing the first paying customer was Rasmus’ biggest challenge. “After the client said yes — and at a price I was happy with — I walked around the first floor of LIFT99, not understanding what had just happened. I couldn’t believe it. I even called the client back to make sure I had heard right,” he laughs.
“I walked around the first floor of LIFT99, not understanding what had just happened. I couldn’t believe it.”
Free Time and Hobbies
Rasmus couldn’t enter DoBu into a student company project as it was already a real business. Instead, he turned his hobby of cold plunging into Nullivann, which became Estonia’s best student company and appeared on national TV. Cold plunging remains one of his favorite ways to relieve stress.
Courage and Growth
While many would have gone straight to university, Rasmus chose another path: interning during summers and working on side hustles through middle and high school, he decided to skip uni. Instead he joined Kood/Jõhvi bootcamp to learn coding, and a trip to London to find his CTO. His proactive courage to open doors and find people has been key to DoBu’s success.
Kristjan-Thor Vähi, a partner and board member of real estate developer Invego, has worked together with Rasmus and DoBu for a while now, and praises the technology, “Homeowners are very satisfied with the efficiency and helpfulness of it - I’m looking forward to our continued partnership.” In addition to Invego, the latest developers to join hands with DoBu are Dorpat Kinnisvara and Capital Mill.
LIFT99 and Community
For Rasmus, LIFT99 is more than office space. “There’s focus and work, of course — but also community. Wednesday Lunches let you meet new people and spark unexpected connections. That’s the most valuable part of LIFT99 for me.”
“There’s focus and work, of course — but also community. That’s the most valuable part of LIFT99 for me.”