It will come as a surprise to nobody that OnePlus co-founder Carl Pei’s new company, Nothing, will make a smartphone this year.
“What if 2021 was just a warm-up?” a cryptic message on the Nothing website notes, almost certainly referring to its 2021 purchase of Essential, the former smartphone company started by Android founder Andy Rubin. There is a Qualcomm Snapdragon logo next to the message. And Nothing says it will hold an online event called “The Truth” on March 23.
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Since the Essential acquisition, Nothing has been pretty quiet: the only product it’s released is a pair of earbuds called the ear(1). But having just raised $70 million in a new funding round, it’s got the money it needs to go after the smartphone market.
“The funding will be used to create new product categories in partnership with Qualcomm Technologies and its Snapdragon platform, and grow operations at its new London Design Hub, led by ex-Dyson Head of Design Adam Bates,” Nothing revealed.
Nothing describes itself as “a London-based tech company on a mission to remove barriers between people and technology.” It is “crafting intuitive, flawlessly connected products that improve our lives without getting in the way [with] no confusing tech-speak, no silly product names … beautiful tech shouldn’t be complicated.”