Our user community have asked this question a few times in our Facebook group. I’m posting it here for all the curious minds.
Short Answer
Steve Jobs left Apple and started "NeXT." Tony Fadell left Apple and started "Nest Labs." When we left Apple in 2017 to found our second startup, we felt it was only fitting to begin our name with “Ne” as well — leading to the name “Nex.”
We strive to hold ourselves to the high standards that Steve and Tony set.
Long Asnwer
Our full company name is Nex Team Inc., registered in Delaware.
Since “Nex” is a fairly common name, we needed something more. We chose “Team” — a nod to our first startup, Team and Concepts Limited, which was acquired by Apple in 2008.
The belief back then — and still now — was simple: if the team stays together, we’ll figure it out.
That belief carried us forward. From the very beginning, this team has had the optimism and courage to believe that no matter what we choose to build, if we pour our hearts into it, given time, we will be among the world’s best.
Team and Concepts built EditGrid, one of the first online spreadsheets in the world, which led to the Apple acquisition. We brought the technology behind real-time collaboration into Apple’s productivity suite — Pages, Numbers, and Keynote.
Nex went on to build Nex Playground — now recognized as the first credible entrant into the game console market in the last 20+ years, breaking into a space long dominated by the Big Three: Nintendo, PlayStation, and Xbox.
Today, our definition of “Team” has expanded.
It includes our partners — in silicon, manufacturing, industrial design, logistics, ecommerce, retail, licensed IP from iconic brands, game studios, etc. — who lend us their strength. It also includes our 200,000-strong user community, who offer invaluable feedback and help guide our development.
Together, we share a deep optimism for the future — and a belief that what we’ve built is just the beginning of something even greater.