Essential Products

Essential Products Inc.

Company type	Private
Industry	Technology
Founded	November 9, 2015 (2015-11-09)
Founders	Andy Rubin Matt Hershenson
Defunct	February 12, 2020 (2020-02-12)
Fate	Dissolved
Successor	Nothing
Headquarters	380 Portage Avenue, Palo Alto 94306 , US
Key people	Niccolo De Masi (president and chief operating officer)
Products	Essential Phone Essential Home
Number of employees	~100
Parent	Nothing
Website	www.essential.com

Essential Products (commonly known as Essential) was a US-based technology firm established on November 9, 2015, by Andy Rubin and headquartered in Palo Alto, California. The company designed and marketed the Essential Phone alongside accessories such as a 360-degree camera. Operations ceased on February 12, 2020, due to the absence of a feasible method to launch its forthcoming smartphone.

History

Founded in Palo Alto by Android co-creator Andy Rubin, Essential received initial backing from Playground Global. December 2016 marked the arrival of Brian Wallace, formerly Magic Leap’s chief marketing officer, who joined the leadership team. During the same month, Essential registered trademarks for its brand identity.

By early 2017, the company was preparing to reveal its smartphone. Rubin generated anticipation through social media teasers before officially introducing the Essential Phone and the smart speaker Essential Home on May 30, 2017.

In August 2017, Essential attracted investments from Amazon, Tencent, and Foxconn, pushing its valuation beyond $1 billion and earning it unicorn status prior to any product shipments.

Nevertheless, by May 2018, Essential abandoned plans for its next flagship smartphone and began considering a potential sale.

December 2018 saw Essential acquire CloudMagic, the developer behind the Newton email application, signaling a strategic pivot towards software development.

In October 2019, the company teased the 'Gem,' an ultra-thin AI-powered voice assistant device intended as the PH-1’s successor. This product never reached market release; in February 2020, Essential announced its shutdown due to failure to commercialize this device.

On February 17, 2021, Carl Pei’s startup Nothing purchased the Essential brand.

Essential Phone

Released in 2017, the Essential Phone supported upgrades up to Android 10 and was distributed exclusively in the United States and Canada. Following Essential’s closure, software updates including security patches were discontinued on February 3, 2020.

Newton Mail

In early 2019, Essential acquired CloudMagic Inc., creators of the Newton Mail application which had ceased operations in September 2018. Under Essential’s ownership, Newton Mail resumed service but ultimately shut down on April 30, 2020.

Undelivered Products

Project GEM was an experimental second smartphone introduced in October 2019 but was discontinued three months later following Essential's closure.

Essential Home referred to a smart speaker and home hub designed to operate on Essential’s exclusive "Ambient OS". Although intended for release in late 2017, this product never became available commercially.