Apple Head of Design leaves the company
Jony Ive, the senior VP of Apple, is leaving the company after more than two decades. The person behind the designs of iPhone, iPad and Mac devices revealed that he will start his own creative agency, called LoveFrom. It will launch in 2020, and Apple will be its first client.
Jony Ive, or as is his full name, Sir Jonathan Paul Ive, will have no immediate successor in Apple, at least for now. People like Alan Dye, the director of the UI team, and Evans Hankey, the leader of the industrial design team, will report to Apple’s COO.
Tim Cook, the Apple CEO, said his group of in-house designers is the strongest it’s ever been. He also said that the company will continue to work with Ive, albeit on different terms.
However, such a massive change on the top executive levels will come as a shock to investors and customers. Following the departure of the retail chief Angela Ahrendts in April during one of the most intense periods of the trade war between the United States and China, Ive is the second high profile officer to leave the company.
In the interview, Ive also said he would continue working on wearable technology and healthcare, two of Apple’s strategic priorities if the iPhone sales keep slowing down. Separating himself into a creative agency will allow him to work for Apple as a contractor, but not limit him – LoveFrom will still be free to take projects from other companies.