Meet Jony Ive, man who designed Apple iPhone, iPad, Air Pod, is Steve Jobs’ close friend, will now team up with..., his new role will be...

Open AI has acquired John Ive’s artificial intelligence device startup IO, in a $6.4 billion deal. Jony Ive, 58, will take over as the Chief designer for Sam Altman's OpenAI. From designing Macbooks to Apple watches, Jony Ive has been one of the most important people in Apple. He also closely worked with Apple co-founder Steve Jobs.

Who is Jony Ive?

Jony Ive was born in London. He graduated from Newcastle Polytechnic, now Northumbria university in the UK. Later, he founded his own design firm named Tangerine in London. He joined Apple in 1922 and has worked for nearly three  decades. He moved to California, US, and was positioned in the company's design department, later, he was promoted as the head of the department in 1996.

He served as chief design officer and is behind designing pieces like iMac, MacBook, iPhone, iPod, iPad and even Apple watches. These designs are Apple's most popular and iconic ones, positioning the tech giant at a position that it is now. 
Jony Ive, was Apple's Steve Job close confidant. When he died, Jony Ive called him, “closest and most loyal friend.” As per many, John Ive was one of the important people in Apple. However, he wanted to leave Apple way before Steve Jobs' death.  Steve Jobs was ousted and the company was more focusing on profits. But, later everything got resolved when Steve Jobs returned, and he stayed back. Steve Jobs died in 2011. Jony ive worked in Apple till 2019. I've left Apple to launch his own independent design firm, LoveFrom.  

Now in 2025, Jony Ive's startup 'IO' has been officially acquired by OpenAI, as per the joint statement. Sam Altman has called Ive as the "greatest designer in the world." Jony Ive will assume design responsibilities in the company. As per reports, 'LoveForm' was quietly collaborating with OpenAI for two years. So far, there has been no confirmation on what kind of specific products will Ive designed and when they will roll out.