Apple’s iPhone product design executive supposedly enlisted in a new AI-related project،
Tang Tan, Apple's current head of iPhone design, who is expected to leave the company in February, has reportedly already been asked to join another company. According to Bloomberg's Mark Gurmanthe head of product design was recruited from LoveFrom by renowned Apple designer Jony Ive.
The company, backed by OpenAI's Sam Altman, reportedly invited Tan to participate in a new hardware project aimed at exploring and integrating the latest capabilities into new types of devices, expected to harness AI and its capabilities.
What exactly is Ive's LoveFrom?
LoveFrom is Ive's design company, a creative collective whose purported goal is to establish the look and functionality of new products. In the new project, the company would rely on Altman to provide the software foundations, while Tan could lead the hardware engineering of the project. Interestingly enough, Ive's LoveFrom is rumored to have a lot of former Apple talent on board. Reportedly, more than 20 former employees of the Cupertino-based tech giant are currently part of the iconic designer's company. Most recently, Shota Aoyagi reportedly joined LoveFrom. At Apple, he worked on Ive's industrial design team.
Ive is a former Apple employee himself. The iconic designer has worked on some of the company's most successful products, including the iMac, iPad, and iPhone. He joined the company in 1992 and left in 2019 after 27 years with the Cupertino-based tech giant. The legendary designer has since embarked on all kinds of projects, with LoveFrom standing out as one of his most ambitious projects to date.
The company, which Tan is expected to join after leaving Apple in February, appears to be in its early stages of development. And yet, LoveFrom has reportedly already courted some high-profile clients, including Airbnb Inc. and Ferrari NV. As Bloomberg points out, the company also had a three-year contract with Apple to provide consulting services, which ended last year.
More and more top talents say goodbye to Apple
News of the departure of the Cupertino-based tech giant's head of product design first broke in early December. Although Apple's vice president of product design is not expected to leave the company until February, rumor has it that his duties have already been transferred to other members of the company.
Tan is just one of many high-profile talents who have recently left Apple. As Bloomberg points out, Patrick Coffman is another valued employee who has left the company. He was a prominent leader in user interface design. Another executive who has apparently decided to step down is Colin Burns. He is still a senior director at Apple and reportedly left the company in January.
