Essential dies again as OSOM will reportedly shut down this week

Ben Schoon | Sep 4 2024 - 4:12 pm PT

What was left over from Essential turned into OSOM in 2021, with the promise of a privacy-focused smartphone with the hardware that made Essential PH-1 great. Now, OSOM is reportedly shutting down within the next week.

OSOM was founded by Jason Keats, a former key member of the Essential team, and initially planned on releasing the OV1, a spiritual successor to the PH-1 in many ways. But that device never made it to market as the company abruptly shifted its plans to turn that device into the Solana Saga, an Android-based device based on cryptocurrency and blockchain tech. The only non-crypto product the company released was the “Privacy Cable,” which could switch between data transfer and charging-only modes for the sake of privacy. A sequel to the Solana Saga was also planned and has been on pre-order for several months.

But OSOM’s future is not looking all that bright, with the company reportedly shutting down this week.

Android Authority reports that, following a lawsuit in which OSOM’s founder was alleged to be using company funds on personal purchases, committing fraud, OSOM will shut down. The company is apparently set to lay off all employees later this week aside from a few engineers to continue software support for Solana Saga.

Jason Keats denies allegations in the lawsuit, and a spokesperson said that OSOM is “aware of the outlandish allegations by a former employee.”

There’s no word on what will happen to a second Solana device (it’s still available for pre-order now).