Jonathan Ive leaves Apple

Sir Jonathan Ive, Apple’s Chief Design Officer is leaving the company after being at the company since 1990 and has been pivotal to the rise of Apple into a multi-billion company. Over his tenure at Apple, his design philosophy has influenced every Apple product on how they should look physically and work digitally. Although he is officially leaving Apple, Jonathan Ive is leaving to form a design company from LoveFrom which will have Apple as its primary client. Be assured that Jonathan Ive will still have some influence on how Apple products will look and function.

However, from the press release from Apple regarding Jonathan Ive’s departure hints that his design team has been designing the Apple products while his focus has been on the Apple Park. See a quote from the press release:

“Jony is a singular figure in the design world and his role in Apple’s revival cannot be overstated, from 1998’s groundbreaking iMac to the iPhone and the unprecedented ambition of Apple Park, where recently he has been putting so much of his energy and care,” said Tim Cook, Apple’s CEO. “Apple will continue to benefit from Jony’s talents by working directly with him on exclusive projects, and through the ongoing work of the brilliant and passionate design team, he has built over the years. After so many years working closely together, I’m happy that our relationship continues to evolve and I look forward to working with Jony long into the future.”

Although Apple’s stocks have taken a hit following the announcement, I am sure that Jonathan Ive has built a self-reliant creative design team that will be able to design top quality products and may bring some new designs that will move Apple forward into the future. However, I am also sure that Jonathan Ive will still continue to work closely with Apple and provide some advice and assistance.