Apple's design team has lost another key member. Abidur Chowdhury, who unveiled the iPhone Air in September, has left the company. His departure comes at a time when Apple's design department has already lost several experienced professionals. The decision has caused a stir internally because Chowdhury was considered a rising star and played a prominent role in product presentations.
Since Jony Ive's departure in 2019, Apple's design team has been under intense scrutiny. Prominent designers have repeatedly left the company, some to follow Ive, others to pursue new career paths. Each of these changes raises questions about the evolution of Apple's design culture. The latest departure fits this pattern and provides another example of the significant shifts in the company's internal structures.
The departure of a promising Apple design icon
Abidur Chowdhury recently left Apple, according to Bloomberg . He had previously been a member of the industrial design team for several years. He was particularly visible in September when he introduced the iPhone Air in a two-minute presentation. Despite this prominent role, his departure is said to have nothing to do with the device or the disappointing sales figures of the iPhone Air.
Chowdhury is moving to an AI startup, a move that has attracted attention internally at Apple because he was considered a promising talent. He had been with the company since 2019 and belonged to the generation of designers hired after Jony Ive's departure. Ive's exit marked a turning point. Many designers subsequently left the company; some founded a new design firm with Ive, while others moved to tech competitors. Currently, only a few designers who worked under Ive remain at Apple.
The leadership structure is also in flux. Jeff Williams, the former Chief Operating Officer, took over leadership of the product design team in 2023. In this role, he was also responsible for the communication between design, engineering, and production. However, Williams retired last week , resulting in another structural change. The Apple design team now reports directly to Tim Cook. This decision demonstrates how central design remains to the company's direction, even as personnel structures change.
The recurring departures of high-profile designers raise questions about the future of Apple's design identity. At the same time, the company remains committed to its signature clean and functional design language, which has defined the brand for years. How this philosophy evolves will depend more heavily on new teams and new leadership.
The next step in the ongoing evolution of Apple design
Chowdhury's departure is the latest in a series of significant personnel changes that have accompanied Apple since 2019. With Jeff Williams' departure and the design team reporting directly to Tim Cook, a new phase begins. Apple remains a brand strongly defined by design, but the methods used to achieve it are noticeably changing. How the company leverages these changes will become clear in the next generation of products. (Image: Shutterstock / Tada Images)
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