Nanoleaf: Smart home lighting specialist acquired by SwitchBot parent company

The two companies OneRobotics (SwitchBot) and Nanoleaf are joining forces. At a rather affordable price. What will become of the products?

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Nanoleaf-light tube

Nanoleaf light tube: Known for solid and quite affordable technology.

(Image: Nanoleaf)

3 min. read

Major deal in the smart home business: SwitchBot's parent company, OneRobotics, headquartered in Shenzhen, is acquiring Nanoleaf, based in Shenzhen, Toronto, and Paris. Both companies are particularly known to users of home automation: OneRobotics, or SwitchBot, among others, for its switches and various other accessories, from sensors to robot vacuums, and Nanoleaf for its numerous lighting solutions, from individual bulbs to display cases. However, both companies are increasingly developing in the fields of robotics and AI. For instance, OneRobotics recently presented its own household robot and showed a cuddly toy with AI. Nanoleaf also announced a corresponding “pivot” and intended to enter this area as well. However, so far, it has remained largely at announcements.

The acquisition of Nanoleaf by the SwitchBot parent company is said to have cost around 40 million US dollars, according to a filing with the Hong Kong Stock Exchange. From the published figures, it is known that Nanoleaf generated revenue of 30.8 million dollars in 2025 but is still operating at a loss (around 1.66 million dollars for the year).

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OneRobotics therefore acquired Nanoleaf at a bargain price, which is about 1.3 times its revenue. It is unclear whether Nanoleaf was forced to sell. OneRobotics recently succeeded in going public on the Hong Kong Stock Exchange (HKEX), which has injected a lot of new capital into the company.

It is unclear what the deal means for Nanoleaf products. These are mainly sold in Germany via Amazon and directly through a shop based in Ireland. Customers familiar with the brand are annoyed by, among other things, the confusing discount policy, and delivery sometimes takes quite a while. However, the hardware itself is considered stable, even though competitors like Govee offer similar features at lower prices. As is often the case with Chinese brands, Nanoleaf's apps are not very intuitive; however, this also applies to SwitchBot's apps.

However, Nanoleaf CEO Gimmy Chu recently emphasized in interviews that the company intends to focus heavily on robotics and AI in the future, as well as the cosmetic sector. Nanoleaf, originally founded in Toronto, had included a red light therapy mask in its product line. As mentioned, the brand is known in the smart home business, so OneRobotics is unlikely to want to bury it. The company itself became known through a gadget initially distributed via Kickstarter: a small switch that can operate existing controls in apartments and offices – essentially a very simple type of mini-robot. Later, OneRobotics focused on a much broader range of products but kept the brand name SwitchBot. The switch is now somewhat confusingly named SwitchBot Bot. It recently appeared in a version with a battery, whereas previously the battery had to be replaced regularly.

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This article was originally published in German. It was translated with technical assistance and editorially reviewed before publication.