Nothing Spins Off CMF into Standalone Indian Firm
Nothing is separating its CMF line into an India-based company with local R&D, aiming for 100 million annual shipments.
Key points
- Nothing is spinning off CMF into a standalone company that will be majority Indian-owned and headquartered in India.
- The new entity targets 100 million annual smartphone shipments, aiming to build a global brand through local R&D.
- CEO Carl Pei states that manufacturing alone is insufficient; the firm needs in-house engineering to create a durable ecosystem.
Consumer electronics firm Nothing is restructuring its business by spinning off the CMF smartphone line into a separate, India-focused entity. The new company will be majority-owned by Indian stakeholders, headquartered in the country, and equipped with its own research and engineering teams.
CEO Carl Pei stated that the goal is to build a globally competitive brand rooted in domestic innovation. While Nothing will retain a stake and continue as a partner, the move signals a shift from simple manufacturing to deep, in-house product development within India.
Shift from manufacturing to research
India already produces nearly all of the smartphones sold domestically, making it the world’s second-largest manufacturing hub. However, Pei argues that assembly alone does not create a durable technology ecosystem. The country lacks a brand that drives demand for locally developed components and software, a gap the new CMF entity aims to fill.
The strategy mirrors the path taken by Chinese manufacturers, which built extensive engineering capabilities that pushed suppliers to innovate. By co-engineering displays, chipsets, and camera modules, these firms created a broader supplier ecosystem capable of serving global markets. Nothing intends to replicate this model in India, leveraging its existing software and design expertise to drive local R&D.
Ambitious production targets set
The new entity targets an annual output of 100 million smartphones, a significant leap from current volumes. This ambition relies on India’s large domestic market, which sees over 150 million smartphone sales per year, and government policies supporting electronics exports. Achieving this volume requires scaling up not just assembly, but the entire value chain from component sourcing to final software integration.
CMF has already shown strong market traction, becoming India’s fastest-growing smartphone sub-brand in 2025. This growth provides a foundation for the standalone company, but reaching the 100 million mark will depend on sustained investment in structural engineering, thermal management, and operating system development. The transition positions the brand to compete on technological merit rather than price alone.
Historical lessons in market share
Pei pointed to the trajectory of Indian smartphone brands between 2015 and 2025. In 2015, domestic brands held nearly half of the market, with one briefly leading sales ahead of Samsung. By 2025, their share had fallen to less than one percent as global players improved camera quality, design, and software integration.
This decline illustrates the limitations of relying on off-the-shelf designs, according to Pei. Long-term competitiveness requires continuous product development and the ability to iterate on hardware and software. The new structure is designed to prevent a repeat of this loss by embedding deep engineering capabilities within the Indian market.
