London-based smartphone maker Nothing has bagged $96m (£75.9m) in fresh capital from the likes of music group Swedish House Mafia and the investment arm of Google.
Launched in 2020 by OnePlus co-founder Carl Pei, the company has gone on to release earbuds and a smartphone, which has gone on to sell more than 1.5 million units.
Nothing will reveal the successor to its first phone on 11 July and said it will have a “lower carbon footprint “.
The consumer electronics company will use the influx of capital to challenge the dominance of Apple and Samsung.
“In just over two years, we’ve assembled one of the strongest teams in the industry and sold over 1.5 million devices worldwide,” Pei said.
“It’s clear that there’s real demand for an innovative challenger in the consumer tech industry, and with this new round of financing, we’ve never been better positioned to realize our vision to make tech fun again.”
The round was spearheaded by technology fund Highland Europe. Nothing also struck a chord with new investors and musicians Swedish House Mafia. Google Ventures, EQT Ventures and C Capital have also provided funds.
Highland Europe’s partner Tony Zappalà will sit on Nothing’s board as part of the deal.
Zappalà said: “In an industry as challenging as this, it has been quite some time since a new company of this scale and ambition has reached this stage, given the difficulty and complexity of surviving in such a competitive environment.”
“We are enthusiastic about supporting Nothing as they take on the consumer tech giants and challenge the prevailing norms.”
Alongside the institutional backers, the electronics firm attracted funding from more than 8,000 private investors in two community rounds, bringing its overall investment to $250m (£197.4m).