Ex-OSOM exec blasts CEO for lining pockets with company cash

It’s been over three years since OSOM Products Inc. introduced the Osom OV1, a smartphone designed by the ex-Essential team after the company shut down. The OV1 was meant to go head-to-head with the leading Android phones from Google and Samsung, featuring a sturdy build with stainless steel, titanium, Corning Victus glass, and a Qualcomm processor. But instead of making headlines for a new product, OSOM is now in the spotlight due to a lawsuit filed by one of its former executives.

As reported by Android Authority, former chief privacy officer Mary Stone Ross is suing OSOM, claiming that its CEO Jason Keats misused company money for extravagant purchases, like two Lamborghinis. Ross served as the company’s chief privacy officer from 2021 until May 2024.

OSOM was born from the downfall of Essential in early 2020, when a group of former employees came together to start fresh. The new company focused on creating privacy-centered products, bringing on Ross in early 2021 as its chief privacy officer to lead the charge.

In 2022, OSOM rolled out its debut product, the Saga, an Android phone with backing from the blockchain heavyweight Solana. A year later, the company added the OSOM Privacy Cable to its lineup and was in talks with Solana Mobile about a follow-up to the Saga. Now, it looks like the Solana Saga Two is off the table, and the whole smartphone project might be falling apart.

The company that rose from Essential’s ruins seems to be crumbling

In a lawsuit filed on August 30 in Delaware’s Court of Chancery, the former CPO is asking the court to force OSOM to reveal its financial records. This move is intended to prove that Keats mishandled the company’s finances.

As per the lawsuit, Keats also allegedly used company funds for personal expenses, including his racing hobby, his racing partner’s salary, and his mortgage. The lawsuit also states that the former head of finance might have quit because of these dubious financial practices.

The lawsuit also alleges that Keats made a failed attempt to offload OSOM to HP. When that didn’t pan out, he supposedly set his sights on an “AI-powered camera” project. Meanwhile, OSOM’s resources are said to be running on empty.

OSOM might be on the edge of financial collapse, according to court documents. While the CEO hasn’t commented, a company spokesperson has brushed off the former employee’s claims as “outlandish” and promised to refute them in court.