London-based consumer tech company Nothing has raised $200 million (almost £150m) in a Series C round, valuing the business at $1.3 billion (almost £1bn).
The funding marks a major milestone for the firm as it becomes the latest UK unicorn.
The company, which describes itself as the only independent smartphone company to emerge in the last decade, now plans to evolve into an AI-native platform where hardware and software converge into a single intelligent system.
Founded in 2020, it has sold millions of devices worldwide and says it crossed $1bn in total sales at the start of 2025, following 150% growth last year.
Its products include the Phone (2), Phone (2a), and Ear (2), which have helped the startup carve out a loyal global community.
“When we started Nothing, we had a thesis that if we could build a smartphone business at scale and own the last-mile distribution point in consumer tech, we would be well-positioned for the next technology shift,” said CEO Carl Pei.
“Although we didn’t know what that would look like at the time, the opportunity is now crystal clear.”
Pei claims that the company’s infrastructure, from award-winning design to a global supply chain, has created “the ability to launch any consumer hardware product from start to finish within months” while avoiding the “bureaucratic constraints that the incumbents face”.
He also believes smartphones will remain central to personal computing in the AI era, but argues that innovation in the space has barely evolved.
He continued: “For AI to reach its full potential, consumer hardware must reinvent itself alongside it.
“This is the opportunity we see for Nothing.”
The company expects its AI operating system to extend beyond smartphones, earbuds and smartwatches into smart glasses, humanoid robots, EVs and future form factors.
It also sees an opportunity in creating a new class of AI-native devices that complement smartphones.
Pei added: “In the coming years, we’ll learn that the more context we can feed our AI, the more useful it becomes.
“The smartphone, while powerful, can’t always be there for us,” it explained.
The startup, who saw the round led by Tiger Global, plans to launch its first AI-native devices in 2026.
Nory raises £27m as it doubles down on building AI assistants