Nothing raises $200M Series C led by Tiger Global to expand AI-driven smartphones, grow market share, and launch its first AI-first device next year. Smartphone venture Nothing revealed today that it finalized its Series C financing of 200 million dollars, which was spearheaded by the investment organization Tiger Global. With this investment, the consumer technology startup is currently estimated at 1.3 billion dollars.
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Key Investors and Strategic Support
Additional participants in the round comprised existing supporters, including investment groups GV, Highland Europe, EQT, Latitude, I2BF, and Tapestry. The enterprise, established by Carl Pei, who earlier co-founded Chinese smartphone manufacturer OnePlus, recognized for high-performance products at competitive rates, also obtained new tactical support from Nikhil Kamath and Qualcomm Ventures.
Total Capital Raised
The fresh funding elevates Nothing’s total raised capital to over 450 million dollars.
AI-Driven Hardware and Software Vision
Carl and the group at Nothing are reinventing hardware plus software with an AI framework to position their devices for the upcoming generation of personal electronics. We are delighted to collaborate with this outstanding team as they innovate AI-native functionalities, stated Matt Watcher, a partner at Tiger Global, in remarks to TheTechCrunch.
Community-Driven Investment
The enterprise indicated it will shortly introduce another community-driven investment round. In prior community campaigns, the company collected 11.5 million dollars in aggregate.
Brand and Sales Milestones
The company has wagered on appearance distinction so far, and it has benefited the startup considerably. Nothing explained it surpassed 1 billion dollars in accumulated sales earlier this year. An early stakeholder in the enterprise told TheTechCrunch that they were pleased with the firm’s advancement path and route toward profitability.
Distribution and Product Launches
The startup explained that until this stage, it concentrated its efforts on constructing a distribution network and facilities to unveil a product within months and deliver it globally. Notably, its recently introduced Phone 3, which highlights the company’s trademark see-through design style and distinctive user environment, was merely its second device to gain wide availability in the United States.
Market Share and Growth
Nothing possesses under one percent market share internationally, but within India, its largest marketplace, it successfully obtained a two percent share, according to research company IDC. The company has delivered 5.1 million units so far, with the firm shipping beyond a million pieces only in Q2 2025. IDC mentioned its worldwide progress has been gradual, as eighty percent of its devices are sold in Asia.
Targeting the Next Generation of Consumers
Pei expressed that he desires to direct his brand toward the coming generation of customers who may search for alternatives beyond established players. The method we have used to distinguish our brand and distinguish our merchandise is clearly resonating with our segment of consumers. We are appealing to the younger generation.
Investor Perspectives
Highland Europe partner Tony Zappalà, who is a continuing investor in the enterprise, expressed that the firm has fulfilled its assurances and possesses space to expand within this enormous industry. He explained that Nothing is currently an acknowledged title in the sector, which delivers benefits concerning drawing talent and establishing supplier connections.
Building an AI Operating System
The company intends to construct an operating system featuring AI and customization functions that could stretch beyond smartphones. Presently, we have merely observed limited glimpses of AI inside the platform with options like Essential Search, an intelligent discovery utility that assists customers in locating data across their devices.
AI Leadership and Challenges
The startup has recruited Sélim Benayat, a previous executive from Linktree and creator of Bento, a platform producing customized landing pages for online profiles, to oversee its AI initiatives.
Zappalà mentioned that the difficulty in designing such an operating system involves both customer usability and trust matters.
AI Integration in Consumer Devices
Corporations such as Apple have encountered difficulties embedding AI capacities effectively inside their platforms. For Nothing, the challenge remains achieving equilibrium between novelty and usefulness while executing AI components. Pei trusts that smartphones continue to be the best approach to deliver AI, and they will remain the dominant structure for all consumer AI programs for at least three to five years, he explained during his conversation with TheTechCrunch in July.
Looking Ahead: AI-First Device
With this financing announcement, the enterprise explained that it anticipates releasing an AI-first gadget next year. Nevertheless, there have not been numerous success narratives within the AI hardware segment.
AI hardware startup Humane was purchased by HP following issues with its AI Pin device, and AI assistant enterprise Rabbit has been attempting to enhance its R1 device, launching a revised software update recently after the company was dissatisfied with its initial version.
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