OpenAI has announced that Jony Ive, the renowned British designer behind many of Apple’s most iconic products, is joining the team. CEO Sam Altman expressed his excitement, calling Jony the “greatest designer in the world.”
OpenAI is set to acquire Jony’s startup, io, in a deal valued at $6.5 billion. Altman shared his enthusiasm about collaborating to “create a new generation of AI-powered computers.”
Jony, known for his work on the iMac, iPod, iPhone, and iPad, will take on extensive design and creative responsibilities within the company, as stated in an announcement.
However, developing new hardware centered around it has proven to be more challenging—recent attempts have struggled to capture consumer interest and have faced criticism from reviewers. Altman, though, has expressed his confidence that this partnership can achieve what others could not. “I think we have the opportunity here to kind of completely re-imagine what it means to use a computer,” he said in a video accompanying the announcement.
Jony stated that he believes the world is on the “brink of a new generation of technology.” It may not be long until this new “family of devices” from the two make an impact. “The first one we’ve been working on I think has just completely captured our imagination,” said Jony.
Altman noted that he has already tested a prototype of a new device designed by Sir Jony and his team, and he believes it is “the coolest piece of technology that the world will have ever seen.”
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Departure and new ventures
Jony worked for Apple for 27 years, playing a crucial role in revitalizing the company with groundbreaking products including the iPhone and iPod. He also designed the iMac in 1998 and the iPad in 2010.
When Jony departed from the company in 2019, Apple’s CEO Tim Cook described him as “a singular figure in the design world and his role in Apple’s revival cannot be overstated.”
Following the news of his partnership with OpenAI, shares in Apple fell more than 2 percent. He left to establish his own company, LoveFrom, which has collaborated with brands such as Airbnb and Moncler.
In the announcement regarding the merger, it was noted that LoveFrom had been “quietly collaborating” with OpenAI for two years. The concept for io, which Sir Jony founded last year with others, emerged from this partnership. “It became clear that our ambitions to develop, engineer and manufacture a new family of products demanded an entirely new company,” said Jony and Altman. OpenAI held a 23 percent stake in the startup prior to Wednesday’s announcement, according to US media.
