Apple goes to war with the designer of the iPhone

July 17, 2026 — 6:15pm

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When Apple sued OpenAI last week, claiming the company behind ChatGPT had sought to steal its trade secrets, one name was conspicuously absent from the lawsuit.

Sir Jony Ive, the British designer whose collaboration with Steve Jobs led to Apple’s most creative years, was not mentioned in the 41-page document, despite his company, io Products, and co-founder Tang Tan being named as defendants.

Ive has recently been working with OpenAI to develop new products, and Apple’s lawyers appeared to go out of their way not to mention him by name, stating that io was founded by “former Apple leaders”.

But the company’s legal manoeuvres against Ive’s new partners suggest a rift between Britain’s most celebrated designer and the company that made him a household name.

OpenAI engineer’s ‘LOL’ moment set stage for legal light with Apple

“Apple is effectively suing Jony Ive,” said Gene Munster, a longtime follower of the company at Deepwater Asset Management.

‘Everything I have learned has led me to this moment’

Ive, 59, is a part of Apple lore. His multicoloured iMac helped save the company in 1998 before the iPod’s minimalist white design and the single-button iPhone turned it into the world’s biggest company.

He left the company in 2019, in a carefully choreographed exit designed to minimise concerns from investors.

Ive set up his own design studio, LoveFrom, and said he would continue to work with Apple.

However, confidants at the time said he had become increasingly detached........

© The Age