Apple Struggles To Find Next Jony Ive As Future Of iPhone Design Hangs In Balance

Apple Inc. AAPL has decided to drop the role of industrial design chief as it failed to find a suitable replacement for Jony Ive after he left the company in 2019. 

What Happened: Apple has decided that the tech giant’s senior industrial designers will now report to Jeff Williams, the chief operating officer, Bloomberg columnist Mark Gurman said in his weekly “Power On” newsletter. 

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The move comes after Evans Hankey, who succeeded Ive as Apple’s head of industrial design, decided to leave the company three years after taking the job. 

The Tim Cook-led tech giant was struggling to find a suitable succession plan to ensure that the fate of Apple’s hardware devices was in good hands and has now decided not to replace Hankey at all but to let the chief operating officer take additional responsibilities. 

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Why It’s Important: At this point, it is unclear how this organizational shuffle might affect Apple’s distinctive future hardware looks. 

However, considering that design is a critical department at Apple, having no to take forward the legacy of legendary design chief Ive, who was the company’s head of industrial design for decades, is a cause for concern, Gurman said. 

Apple did not immediately respond to Benzinga’s request for comments. 

The Tim Cook-led tech giant is currently gearing up to launch its 2023 smartphone lineup and the company’s first-ever mixed-reality headset. 

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