Google Nest

Tony Fadell is widely known as the "father of the iPod": he joined Apple in 2001, led iPod hardware and software development, and was later one of the co-creators of the iPhone, overseeing hardware and accessories for its first three generations. After leaving Apple, he developed the concept for a smarter thermostat and in May 2010 co-founded Nest Labs in Palo Alto with former Apple engineer Matt Rogers. As CEO he launched the Nest Learning Thermostat in 2011, which popularized the self-programming smart thermostat, and led the company through its $3.2 billion acquisition by Google in January 2014. He remained at Google for a period after the deal before departing to found the investment and advisory firm Future Shape.

Matt Rogers was an engineer at Apple, where he worked on iPod software and was among the first engineers on the original iPhone and also contributed to the first iPad. In May 2010 he left Apple to co-found Nest Labs with Tony Fadell, leading engineering as the startup built the Nest Learning Thermostat and later cameras and smoke alarms. He stayed with Nest through and after its $3.2 billion sale to Google in 2014. Rogers subsequently co-founded the early-stage venture firm Incite.org and the food-waste startup Mill, continuing to focus on consumer hardware and sustainability.