London-based tech startup Nothing wants you to help design its next phone.
The company is inviting fans to take control of the next model of its phone by crowdsourcing aspects of its design. Nothing has charmed the tech press with its Android phone models that feature the company’s signature transparent hardware and programmable flashing lights (nicknamed “Glyphs”).
With its upcoming launch, the Phone (2a), the company wants to see where fans will take the design. Through the Community Edition Project, fans will have unprecedented access to the company’s behind-the-scenes design process.
“From opening community investment rounds to inviting community-elected representatives to our board meetings, we started our brand with our community and have continued to grow with it in lockstep,” a Nothing spokesperson wrote in an email to Fast Company. “With the Community Edition Project, we’re excited to cocreate with our talented community members and build something great together.”
The project will roll out in four phases: hardware, wallpaper, packaging, and marketing. Followers are encouraged to submit their own original designs for each step, and winners will be invited to work directly with the Nothing team to execute their visions. While submissions for the hardware stage can’t make adjustments to the physical geometry of the Phone (2a), entrants are free to change any other elements of the phone’s back panel.
“Consider all of the visible components on Phone (2a): the NFC coil, body, buttons, rear cover, and let your imagination take you somewhere else,” the company’s website reads. “By experimenting specifically with the color, materials, and finishes of those components, what else could the back of the phone look like?”
Submissions will be accepted in any form (video, drawing, rendering, etc.) as long as they meet Nothing’s overall guidelines. Community members will then help the Nothing design team decide on the winning entry. The first stage is open now and closes April 16; the whole process is slated to take about six months.
For those drafting their applications, Nothing suggests starting with a couple of basic questions: “Is there a story to tell? Is there an unexpressed aspect of the Nothing DNA we have yet to reveal?” It will be up to users to decide.
