Jony Ive is renowned for crafting a meticulous product design aesthetic that shaped the tech cultural zeitgeist during a 27-year career at Apple.
He did his most influential work after Apple co-founder Steve Jobs returned to run the company in 1997, where the two forged a partnership that would hatch a succession of game-changing products like the iPhone in 2007. Ive ultimately left the company in 2019.
Ive's name was thrust back into the spotlight on Wednesday when ChatGPT maker OpenAI recruited him and his design firm, LoveFrom, to lead a new hardware project.
But OpenAI CEO Sam Altman can only hope this still-blossoming partnership works out as well as the mind-meld between former Apple CEO Steve Jobs and Ive.
Ive became the paintbrush that Jobs used to bring his visions to life. The London-born Ive became the voice of Apple’s effort to blend technological wizardry with sleek elegance. The company’s TV commercials and product announcements were renowned for Ive discussing the intricacies of his designs in British-accented voiceovers spoken in a hushed, almost reverential tone.
After Jobs died in 2011, Ive continued carry the torch for his late boss while still striving to create products that were as aesthetically mesmerizing as they were ground breaking. Ive led design work on the Mac, iPod, iPhone, iPad and Apple Watch.
When he started LoveFrom, Ive derived the name from something Jobs once said about hailing humanity by “making something with a great deal of care and love.” It's worked with brands like Airbnb, Ferrari and Moncler and created the coronation emblem for King Charles III.
He also chose to base LoveForm in San Francisco's historic Jackson Square, located near bars and cafes that were once frequented by Beat Generation luminaries such as “On The Road” author Jack Kerouac and “Howl” author Allen Ginsberg.
