Jony Ive’s departure was made official last week, but may have begun years ago because of Apple’s shift in focus from design to operations, according to the The Wall Street Journal and Bloomberg.
The The Wall Street Journal report follows a similar piece published by Bloomberg last week. Both reports describe an Apple design team, led by Jony Ive, increasingly frustrated by his absence after the launch of the Apple Watch in 2015. They tell the story of a company that once put design at the forefront, progressively being led by operational concerns. Ive’s absence was “straining the cohesion central to product development,” according to the WSJ, causing several key design team members to leave Apple over the last few years.
Ive was “dispirited” by Tim Cook who “showed little interest in the product development process,” according to sources speaking to The Wall Street Journal. This helps explain why Cook, who comes from operations, sometimes appears to be seeing products for the first time in the hands-on area after Apple events.
Ive grew increasingly frustrated as Apple’s board was populated by directors with backgrounds unrelated to the company’s core business.
Ive disagreed with “some Apple leaders” on how to position the Apple Watch. Ive pushed for the Apple Watch to be sold as a fashion accessory, not as an extension of the iPhone. The product that went on sale was a compromise. Apple only sold a quarter of what the company forecasted in the first year, according to The Wall Street Journal, with “thousands” of the $17,000 gold Apple Watch Edition left unsold.
The design team continues work on AR glasses “that would give users visual displays of messages and maps.”
Engineers found that the doomed AirPower charging pad “behaved more like a dorm-room hot plate, heating up loose change and failing to evenly recharge devices.”
Now his new design firm, “LoveFrom,” will reportedly be paid “millions of dollars a year to continue to work with Apple,” The Wall Street Journal said. That could give Ive the best of both worlds, only working on the stuff he wants for Apple without having to deal with internal politics.
