2012 was the year when Samsung Electronics Co. overtook Nokia Corp. in overall handset sales and Apple Inc. in smartphones. But 2013 is shaping up to be a much more competitive landscape. Not only are low-cost smartphone makers in China jostling in to take away market share, but there will also be newcomers in the market, like Finland-based Jolla, a company formed by ex-Nokia engineers. The start-up, which opened its Asia headquarters in Hong Kong in December, is looking to launch a high-end smartphone in the first quarter of 2013. The Wall Street Journal spoke with Jolla's co-founder Sami Pienimaki about the start-up's expansion plans.

The following interview has been edited.

WSJ: Where does the name Jolla come from?

Mr. Pienimaki: It means a one-man sailor boat in Finnish. The idea is that there is this big sea with great opportunity. You start to sail yourself there alone – it's a bit of an adventure and a bit dangerous, but you still want to take this adventure because you see that there is this great opportunity. Nokia was going through a massive transition in 2011 with lots of layoffs and we were able to recruit key talent including engineers that had worked on the MeeGo project. (MeeGo is a mobile operating system that Nokia was developing with Intel Corp. until the project was abandoned in early 2011.)

WSJ: How big is the company now and what are your expansion plans?