Sweden’s multi-stage VC fund EQT Ventures is investing in Swedish entrepreneur Carl Pei‘s tech company in London, Nothing. The startup has raised 70 million dollars in Series B round which EQT and Hong Kong’s C Ventures co-invest in.
The venture capital adopts a multi-stage approach in a way to help entrepreneurs by making equity investments, typically ranging from late seed rounds all the way to growth rounds. EQT Ventures has many helping hands including company builders, engineers, designers, marketers, data scientists, and scaling experts such as Booking.com, King, Spotify, and Hotels.com.
With the new funding, British company Nothing has so far managed to gather 144 million dollars in total. Now, it is expecting to establish its London Design Hub and launch new products in which the company partners up with Qualcomm Technologies and its Snapdragon platform. It has already been holding its carbon-neutral product, ear (1).
Nothing locks $70M Series B financing, and announces 23 March event
Nothing, the UK consumer tech company envisioning a world without barriers between people and technology, has announced a $70M Series B fundraise, co-led by EQT Ventures and C Ventures and with participation from GV, Tony Fadell’s Future Shape, Gaorong Capital and Animoca Brands. The new funding will go towards scaling its product ecosystem and establishing its London Design Hub.
Further announcements about its 2022 roadmap, including a new community investment round, will be made at the Nothing (event): The Truth on 23 March 2022 at 14:00 GMT.
“With this round of financing, we have the fuel to realise the next phase of our vision of a seamless digital future,” said Carl Pei, Nothing CEO and Co-founder. “I’m grateful for the support from our community and investors. Our first year was a warmup, and we can’t wait to reveal what we’re building at Nothing during the upcoming event.”
The new investment brings the total raised by Nothing to $144M to date, including $1.5M from its first community investment round which broke a record for fastest $1M raised. 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.
“We’re delighted to be backing Nothing in this new funding round. For too long, the consumer tech industry has been dominated by the same players, offering customers uninspiring and staid products. Nothing represents a bright, new future – combining innovative design with carbon-neutrality and a forward-thinking approach to help us all re-imagine how we use and interact with our tech,’ said Ted Persson, Partner at EQT Ventures.
“We are proud to back a young entrepreneur like Carl, who shares our vision of engaging next generation customers with an artistic approach,” added Adrian Cheng, C Ventures Founder and CEO of New World Development. “We are excited to support Nothing’s mission to break the hegemony of consumer tech giants and embark on an ambitious journey to challenge the status quo.”
Nothing released its first product, ear (1), carbon-neutral true wireless earbuds in August 2021, shipping over 400,000 units. It is the first step in a promised series of seamlessly connected products, defined by iconic design.
Note:
Recent and notable EQT Ventures investments include:
Instabox, dott, Peakon, Einride, Small Giant Games, and Handshake.
Recent and notable C Ventures investments include:
Casetify, Animoca Brands, RTFKT Studios (acquired by Nike), Matrixport, Sensetime and XPeng etc.
About Nothing
Nothing is a London-based consumer tech company building a world without barriers between people and technology. Starting with sellout debut product ear (1), Nothing is creating an ecosystem of seamlessly connected products and services that bring artistry and passion back to the industry.
Nothing is a privately held company with backing from GV (formerly Google Ventures), EQT Ventures, C Ventures and other private investors including Tony Fadell (Principal at Future Shape & inventor of the iPod), Casey Neistat (YouTube personality and Co-founder of Beme), Kevin Lin (Co-founder of Twitch) and Steve Huffman (Co-founder and CEO of Reddit).
About EQT Ventures
EQT Ventures is a multi-stage VC fund that partners with the most ambitious and boldest founders in Europe and the US. The fund is based in Luxembourg and has investment advisors stationed in Stockholm, Amsterdam, London, San Francisco, Berlin and Paris. Fuelled by experienced company builders and scalers, EQT Ventures helps the next generation of entrepreneurs with the capital and hands-on support needed to build global winners.
About C Ventures
C Ventures is a leading venture capital company founded by Adrian Cheng bridging West and East, curating a global ecosystem targeting Millennials and Generation Z, with a focus on disruptive businesses in the technology and consumer sectors.
Its dedicated and expert team has access to the most highly sought-after deals through a collective network of top global entrepreneurs, family and thought leaders. Other recent investments by C Ventures include Casetify (DTC electronics accessory brand ), Animoca Brands, RTFKT Studios, well known for its NFT sneakers; Matrixport, Sensetime and XPeng etc.
