The CEO of challenger handset brand Nothing Carl Pei (pictured) told lifestyle magazine Inverse it planned to primarily target its next device at the US market, a model he pledged would be higher-tier than its previous units.

Nothing released its debut Phone (1) in the UK in 2022 to much hype around it being streamlined and lacking the bloating software Pei claims is prevalent on some devices.

The handset was priced from £399 and seemingly targeted the mid-tier. It followed the release of a set of earbuds in its 2021 market debut.

In his interview with Inverse Pei, who co-founded OnePlus before setting-up Nothing, outlined an ambition to make its follow-up handset “more premium” with an expected launch date of late 2023 for the Phone (2).

Pei claimed so far, the company had shifted more than 1 million products, though did not specify how many of these were smartphones, and brought in around $200 million in revenue in 2022.

The brand also focuses its devices heavily on unique design features such as its light-up Glyph Interface on the back of its Phone (1) device.

Alongside the launch of devices, the company has been heavily promoting its Android-based Nothing OS, which it claims uses a range of custom features to improve the smartphone software experience.