Father Of Latest Android Phone, Essential Has Already Raised $300 Million.

The creator of one of the leading operating systems in the smartphone market, Andy Rubin has reportedly raised $300 million for his latest venture the Essential Phone. Launched only on 30th May this year, this Series B financing round valued the phone maker at $900 million to $1 billion according to Equidate, a firm that offers up valuations of private startups.

Also Read: FATHER OF ANDROID ANDY RUBIN SET TO RELEASE ESSENTIAL SMARTPHONE

Reportedly, Andy Rubin is looking to use this financing to break further into the consumer electronics segment. While the paperwork on the investment was filed late last month regarding the new investments, Bloomberg reported that the financial backers were not disclosed. Japan-based SoftBank initially had plans to invest $100 million in Essential but later decided to walk away because of its existing relationship with Apple.

This was the second major funding round for Essential Phone, the first being a $30 million raise last year by Redpoint Ventures and Andy Rubin’s own firm Playground Global. The first round also saw participation from Altimeter Capital, China-based Tencent Holdings, and Foxconn Technology group.

Rubin has also unveiled plans for two future products a high-end smartphone and a home speaker. The smartphone and speaker are likely to compete against Amazon’s Echo, Google Home and the newly revealed HomePod by Apple.

Essential PH-1 smartphone will cost $ 749 with the 360-degree camera, 128 GB of internal storage, 4 GB RAM and a Qualcomm Snapdragon 835 processor packed in a hefty 5.7-inch screen.