Longest-serving Apple designer to depart, disbanding Ive’s original team

The departure marks the exit of one of the last remaining senior designers from the Ive era. Most of Ive’s core team that helped envision products like the iPhone, iPad, and Apple Watch has moved on over the last few years. First, Ive himself left Apple in 2019. Since then, senior designers like Colin Burns, Shota Aoyagi, Peter Russell-Clarke departed around the end of 2022.

This brain drain highlights some turmoil within Apple’s design ranks. Both the industrial design and software design teams currently report to Jeff Williams, Apple’s Chief Operating Officer. While skilled at operations, Williams lacks a design background. Some cost-cutting measures under Williams have reportedly also irked staff.

The rapid turnover shows how much Apple has changed since the days when Ive’s small, tight-knit design team worked for over a decade perfecting beloved products. Today, the company has refilled the ranks with fresh talent from outside Apple.

The design group plays a crucial role envisioning new Apple devices and software. They craft intricate product details down to iPhone ringtones and the Apple Watch cardio tap. The team also helped come up with new product categories like Apple Watch and Vision Pro.

It remains to be seen whether Apple’s new designers can recapture the old magic. But the old guard that produced classics like the iPod and iPhone has now largely moved on.