Silicon bromance Apple legend Jony Ive takes control of OpenAI’s design future $6.5B acquisition of Ive's firm puts him in charge of moving OpenAI "beyond screens." Benj Edwards – May 21, 2025 3:21 pm | 64 A still image of Jony Ive (left) and OpenAI CEO Sam Altman taken from a promotional video released by OpenAI. Credit: OpenAI A still image of Jony Ive (left) and OpenAI CEO Sam Altman taken from a promotional video released by OpenAI. Credit: OpenAI Story text Size Small Standard Large Width * Standard Wide Links Standard Orange * Subscribers only   Learn more On Wednesday, OpenAI announced that former Apple design chief Jony Ive and his design firm LoveFrom will take over creative and design control at OpenAI. The deal makes Ive responsible for shaping the future look and feel of AI products at the chatbot creator, extending across all of the company's ventures, including ChatGPT. Ive was Apple's chief design officer for nearly three decades, where he led the design of iconic products including the iPhone, iPad, MacBook, and Apple Watch, earning numerous industry awards and helping transform Apple into the world's most valuable company through his minimalist design philosophy. "Thrilled to be partnering with jony, imo the greatest designer in the world," tweeted OpenAI CEO Sam Altman while sharing a 9-minute promotional video touting the personal and professional relationship between Ive and Altman. A screenshot of the Jony Ive/Sam Altman collaboration website captured on May 21, 2025. Credit: OpenAI Ive left Apple in 2019 to found LoveFrom, a design firm that has worked with companies including Ferrari, Airbnb, and luxury Italian fashion firm Moncler. The mechanics of the Ive-OpenAI deal are slightly convoluted. At its core, OpenAI will acquire Ive's company "io" in an all-equity deal valued at $6.5 billion—Ive founded io last year to design and develop AI-powered products. Meanwhile, io's staff of approximately 55 engineers, scientists, researchers, physicists, and product development specialists will become part of OpenAI. Meanwhile, Ive's design firm LoveFrom will continue to operate independently, with OpenAI becoming a customer of LoveFrom, while LoveFrom will receive a stake in OpenAI. The companies expect the transaction to close this summer pending regulatory approval. Moving beyond screens In some ways, the deal is no big surprise. Ive's design firm and Altman have been working on a new device for two years that aims to create an AI-focused consumer electronics device. The collaboration reportedly focuses on creating devices that will reduce screen time, according to people familiar with the matter who spoke to The Wall Street Journal. The project has so far experimented with options including headphones and devices with cameras. While Ive made his reputation designing physical products at Apple, he also took on more software responsibilities toward the end of his tenure. At OpenAI, his work will extend across future versions of ChatGPT, audio features, apps, and other products. A big part of marketing the deal has focused on the reported friendship between Altman and Ive. In a statement published on OpenAI's website, Altman said he hopes the team-up can “bring some of the delight, wonder and creative spirit that I first felt using an Apple Computer 30 years ago.” (Altman once told Ars Technica that his first computer was a Macintosh LC II, introduced in 1992.) The former Apple designer shared a similar sentiment that reached into his long and storied history as an industrial designer. “I have a growing sense that everything I have learned over the last 30 years has led me to this moment," said Ive. Benj Edwards Senior AI Reporter Benj Edwards Senior AI Reporter Benj Edwards is Ars Technica's Senior AI Reporter and founder of the site's dedicated AI beat in 2022. He's also a tech historian with almost two decades of experience. In his free time, he writes and records music, collects vintage computers, and enjoys nature. He lives in Raleigh, NC. 64 Comments