Cosm, Bedrock and Rock Entertainment Group are partnering to bring one of Cosm’s “shared reality” venues to Cleveland, the immersive technology company’s fifth announced facility to date.
The venue -- which, like other Cosm sites, will contain an 87-foot-diameter LED dome and show live sports in 12K+ resolution -- will anchor Bedrock’s in-progress “Rock Block” mixed-use development in downtown Cleveland’s Gateway District adjacent to the Cavaliers’ Rocket Arena and Guardians’ Progressive Field. Rossetti is architecting the project, as it is Cosm’s previously announced Detroit location, but a general contractor has yet to be selected, according to Cosm CEO Jeb Terry.
“[Cleveland] supports multiple professional sports leagues. It’s got a dense urban core. It’s got a lot of different things that we look at, where we can come in and really augment and add to the local sports and entertainment offerings,” Terry told SBJ when asked what appealed to the company about Cleveland. “We also look at broader demographic profiles, and [Cleveland] is one of the major markets in the U.S.”
Cosm’s relationship with Bedrock, the Detroit-based commercial real estate firm owned by Dan Gilbert, was another factor. Bedrock is also the development partner on Cosm Detroit, and Gilbert was an investor in the $250M funding round Cosm raised last year.
“We’re betting big and long on Cosm, because we know it’s going to be very successful,” said Nic Barlage, CEO of Rock Entertainment Group and an SBJ Forty Under 40 honoree in 2020. “This does not happen without Dan [Gilbert] fueling this type of opportunity through his vision of what it takes to create vibrant urban cores -- and also our thesis that we can have these world-class entertainment assets and resources and platforms right here in the Midwest.”
Cosm Cleveland is targeting an open date in the first half of 2027, according to Terry, and is central to what Barlage referred to as “phase one” of the Rock Block development, which will sit within a wider redevelopment of downtown Cleveland’s riverfront (where, for example, the Cleveland Clinic Global Peak Performance Center is being built). Following the opening of the Cosm venue, Barlage said complementary offerings like experiential retail, additional parking and possibly a hotel or office space will follow, with the goal of being “fully functioning” in the next five years.
“What we’ve seen is Cosm can serve as the catalyst for these developments,” Terry said. “We’re able to draw and support developer ambition.”
In addition to Cleveland, Cosm opened venues in L.A.’s Hollywood Park development and north Dallas’ Grandscape last year and has broken ground on facilities in Atlanta’s Centennial Yards and Detroit’s Cadillac Square.
Cosm was selected as one of SBJ’s 10 Most Innovative Sports Tech Companies for 2025 and SBJ’s 2025 Sports Breakthrough of the Year earlier this year.
