I know HN doesn't like vids for obvious reasons but Marques summed it pretty well IMO: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vZdbbN3FCzE

OnePlus starting out: "We’re going to build the ultimate, cheap, bloatware-free phone directly for tech nerds by cutting out carriers, ads, and useless features."

OnePlus scaling up: "Nerds don't buy enough phones to keep us alive, and they'll leave the second someone else is $10 cheaper. We have to sell to normal people."

OnePlus today: To survive, they had to raise prices, buy ads, partner with carriers, and merge with a generic parent company.