Android co-founder Andy Rubin is reportedly interested in launching a mobile hardware startup to build smartphones.
Sources familiar with the matter tell The Information that Rubin is recruiting people for the new venture. Not much else is known at this time such as whether or not Rubin would be actively involved in the company or if he only wants to fund its startup.
As The Verge suggests, the latter could be a real possibility through his startup incubator Playground Fund. The publication notes the company has raised roughly $300 million and that Rubin has been involved in the venture capital community since joining Redpoint Ventures as a partner back in April.
With the low- and mid-range market well served, Rubin’s best shot at mobile hardware could be in the high-end to compete with Apple.
Rubin co-founded Android Inc. in late 2003 alongside Rich Miner, Nick Sears and Chris White. The company initially planned to create an operating system for digital cameras but after careful consideration, it was determined that the market simply wasn’t large enough and instead decided to build a mobile OS. In hindsight, that was a fantastic decision.
Rubin worked on Android at Google for several years before shifting his focus to the company’s robotics division. He ultimately parted ways with the search giant in October 2014 to launch a startup incubator for hardware companies.
