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The man who won over decades of Apple fans with iconic product design and his pronunciation of “aluminum” is out at the company. Sir Jonathan Paul “Jony” Ive told The Financial Times today that he’s leaving Apple after 27 years.
Ive led a design team that created an army of consumer electronics’ most iconic devices, including the iPhone, iPod and various Mac models. The executive will begin transitioning away from the company at the end of 2019, launching a new project titled LoveFrom next year.
Ive says the firm’s name was inspired by late-Apple founder, Steve Jobs. Per the interview, “There was an employee meeting a number of years ago and Steve [Jobs] was talking . . . He [said] that one of the fundamental motivations was that when you make something with love and with care, even though you probably will never meet . . . the people that you’re making it for, and you’ll never shake their hand, by making something with care, you are expressing your gratitude to humanity, to the species.
Apple confirmed the move in a press release, noting that it will remain a client of his new design firm.
“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 said in the release. “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. 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.”
Ive echoed the sentiment, telling the site, “While I will not be an [Apple] employee, I will still be very involved — I hope for many, many years to come. This just seems like a natural and gentle time to make this change.”
VP Industrial Design Evans Hankey and VP Human Interface Design Alan Dye, will be stepping up to take the reins from Ive, who joined the company full time in September 1992.
Before ascending to the role of Chief Design Officer, Ive made a name for himself at the company with the design of the PowerBook while still at the London-based design firm, Tangerine. In recent years, he had increasingly become one of Apple’s most prominent faces, regularly appearing in design videos for the company.
