Nothing’s brand chief is fed up of ‘boring and generic’ smartphone ads—he shares his marketing strategy for taking on Samsung and Apple
Source: Fortune ·
The brand chief at London-based tech group Nothing explains how he plans to take on Apple and Samsung by rejecting marketing formulas and inviting the customer into the boardroom.
From the source
Nearly two decades after the first iPhone, most smartphones still follow Apple’s template. “Consumer tech’s becoming pretty boring,” says Charlie Smith, chief brand officer at Nothing, the London-based upstart which is aiming to break the mold. “Everyone just copied the success of Apple, which was about minimalism, aluminum, and glass. [Tech] really lost a lot of its personality.” In response, Smith is pursuing what he describes as a “retro futuristic” design approach. Many of Nothing’s smartphones and headphones feature transparent casings that leave some of the internal components exposed. Founded in 2020 by OnePlus co-founder Carl Pei, the company was valued at $1.3 billion after a $200 million Series C round in 2025. Smith sees Dyson as the last British consumer “super brand” and wants Nothing to be the next. Adam Bates, Dyson’s former head of design, now works as Nothing’s design director. A Nothing Phone (4a) Pro, left, and a Nothing Phone (4a) Getty Images, 2026 However,…