Abidur Chowdhury, the industrial designer who narrated Apple’s September video introducing the iPhone Air, has left Apple for an unnamed artificial intelligence startup, according to people familiar with the matter. The departure, first reported by Bloomberg and picked up by other outlets, is the latest in a string of exits that have reshaped Apple’s once-stable design organization.
A high-profile exit
Chowdhury spent more than six years at Apple after joining in 2019 and played a visible role in the launch of the iPhone Air — appearing in a roughly two-minute video that walked viewers through the device’s design process and features. His relatively rapid rise within the industrial design group made the move "make waves internally," people familiar with the situation told reporters. Apple declined to comment, and Chowdhury’s LinkedIn profile reportedly still lists Apple as his current employer.
According to the reporting, Chowdhury’s decision to leave is not connected to the iPhone Air’s debut; the phone’s design has generally been praised even as some analysts and reports have described its early sales as underwhelming. Bloomberg has said a second-generation iPhone Air is planned for 2027.
Part of a broader talent outflow
Chowdhury’s exit arrives amid broader turnover across Apple’s design and AI-related teams. Since long-time design chief Jony Ive’s departure years ago, Apple’s industrial design ranks have thinned as veteran contributors either retired or moved to outside firms. Recent departures cited by industry coverage include senior figures such as Evans Hankey, Tang Tan, Cyrus Daniel, Matt Theobald and Erik de Jong; some of those designers have been linked to new ventures or to Jony Ive’s LoveFrom and to other firms working at the intersection of design and AI.
Separately, Apple’s AI research and engineering ranks have seen defections to major AI companies and startups, contributing to a sense — inside and outside the company — of a growing competition for technical and creative talent.
Organizational shake-up at Apple
The timing coincides with other leadership changes at Apple. Jeff Williams, the long-serving chief operating officer who had oversight of product and design functions, left the company recently; Apple said design teams would report directly to CEO Tim Cook after his departure. The user-interface arm of design, led by Alan Dye, has also experienced turnover, creating additional continuity challenges for teams that sit at the center of Apple’s product development process.
Those shifts have prompted questions about continuity in Apple’s design language and process. Industry observers note that Apple’s design work traditionally integrates industrial design, user-interface design, engineering and manufacturing — a constellation that can be sensitive to turnover among senior practitioners.
Why designers are leaving — and what it means
Multiple forces are drawing designers and researchers away from legacy tech firms: the explosive growth and funding in AI, new studios promising creative freedom, and entrepreneurially minded leaders forming startups or joining specialist agencies. For some designers, the chance to work on product concepts that fuse hardware, software and AI is a major lure.
For Apple, losing a visible design contributor like Chowdhury is consequential mainly for what it signals: the company must replenish its pipeline of senior design talent while maintaining the coherence of product vision across teams. Apple has repeatedly invested in recruiting from outside the company and promoting from within; how quickly it stabilizes the design organization will shape upcoming product cycles, including future iPhone generations and other hardware launches.
What to watch next
- Whether Apple names a successor or promotes internally to cover Chowdhury’s responsibilities.
- Hires or departures in the industrial and user-interface design groups, especially as teams now report directly to the CEO.
- Progress on the iPhone Air roadmap, including the reported second-generation model planned for 2027.
Chowdhury’s move underscores a broader industry trend: the competition for top creative and technical talent is intensifying, and established companies face tough choices to retain staff while adapting to new technological priorities. For consumers and investors, the immediate practical impacts are likely to be gradual; for Apple’s culture and product teams, the changes are already reshaping how design leadership is assembled and rewarded.