September 22, 2026, 2:45 pm | Read time: 2 minutes
The smartphone manufacturer Nothing is facing significant changes. Company founder and CEO Carl Pei has announced plans to establish the subsidiary brand CMF as an independent company. The backdrop is the strained situation in the memory market, which the manufacturer says is increasingly burdensome.
In the future, Indian shareholders are expected to take a majority stake in CMF. However, Nothing will remain involved. The brand is primarily known for affordable smartphones and other electronic products and has built a strong position, especially in India.
CMF Aims for Faster Growth
Carl Pei has ambitious goals with the restructuring. CMF is expected to benefit more from the high demand for affordable smartphones in India. According to the company, a complete supply chain for smartphones and smaller electronic products now exists there. Independence is intended to give CMF more flexibility. The goal is to grow faster and invest more money in developing new products. Pei sees this as an opportunity to significantly expand the brand’s market position.
In the long term, the Nothing CEO is pursuing an ambitious plan. CMF aims to sell 100 million devices annually one day. This could strengthen the company’s influence with suppliers.
According to Pei, larger quantities would also help advance work on software, camera technology, and AI functions. The brand’s independence is intended to lay the foundation for this.
Rising Memory Prices Strain Business
The spin-off is happening during a challenging market phase. As early as January, Nothing pointed out significantly increased prices for memory chips. According to the company, it is becoming increasingly difficult to offer smartphones in the low-price segment.
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The effects were already noticeable. A CMF smartphone planned for this year was canceled. Shortly thereafter, reports about a possible withdrawal of Nothing from several countries sparked discussions. However, the company denied these reports.
Whether the newly announced spin-off will lead to further changes remains unclear. There is also no information yet on the first new device that CMF will introduce as an independent company. Carl Pei has not yet announced when the brand plans to present its next product.