Last year, Danny Hogenkamp decided to step down as CEO of Grassroots Analytics—the fundraising-software company he founded—and focus on a more antiquated piece of technology: the flip phone. His new company, Dumb.co, sells “dumb” phones to people craving an internet detox. The devices, which cost $20 plus a monthly service fee, are basically regular flip phones with custom software that allows functional apps like Google Maps, Uber, and, if you want, Spotify. Internet browsing and social media are not available. “There’s a broad, fast-growing ‘dumb’ movement of young people getting rid of their smartphones,” Hogenkamp says. “We’re trying to be like the Apple for dumb phones.” Hogenkamp, a self-proclaimed Luddite, is already a leader in the burgeoning movement to get more people offline. While building his tech company into a major political-fundraising tool that’s been used by the likes of Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez and Kamala Harris, Hogenkamp was, perhaps paradoxically, quitting social media and hosting phone-free parties. He’s also a partner in Rock Harper’s Hush Harbor, DC’s first phone-free bar (which recently closed its H Street location and is pivoting to pop-ups). But Dumb.co was really born out of Month Offline, a meetup group where the “offline curious” navigate life together while renting a flip phone for a month. Hogenkamp donated money that the group used to get its TLC Flip 2 devices. One participant, a former Washington Post software engineer named Jack Nugent, started tinkering with the phone, and Dumb.co grew from there. Nugent is now the company’s chief technology officer. Dumb.co’s phone plans cost between $15.99 and $25.99 a month, depending on whether you want the ability to sync it with your smartphone or add a music-streaming feature. Hogenkamp says Dumb.co has so far found particular popularity among college kids, who often use the phones when they need to focus on homework or want to be more present when partying or hanging out with their friends. The company is even sponsoring some “dumb houses” on college campuses—including George Washington and Georgetown universities—by offering $500 toward rent if a group of roommates all decide to go in on the dumb phones. The devices have also caught on with some young parents, Hogenkamp says: “All the rage in the new parents groups is not using your phone in front of your baby. People are so hopeful about imbuing their kids with great spirit and joy and being the best version of themselves for their kids.” The young DC company has 15 employees and has sold about 2,000 devices in its first several months, which Hogenkamp hopes to turn into 50,000 by the end of 2027. But while he himself has switched fully to a dumb phone, Hogenkamp doesn’t expect that his customers will also give up their iPhones. His goal is just to get them to put them away sometimes. “Dumb.co is like a good yoga studio,” Hogenkamp says. “We celebrate the mom that makes it once a month or twice a month. But we also really celebrate the people who are like gurus and have totally found inner peace.” Related Meet the DC Tech CEO With a Flip Phone and No Social Media This article appears in the July 2026 issue of Washingtonian.The post Dumb.co’s Flip Phones Let You Reclaim Your Brain first appeared on Washingtonian. ...read more read less