Home rental company Airbnb has hired former Apple chief design officer Jony Ive and his company to create new products and services under a multi-year deal.
CEO of Airbnb, Brian Chesky, said in a blog post that he hoped the partnership 'spoke to the seriousness' of his company's design-driven approach.
Ive left Apple at the end of 2019 after nearly three decades at the company. In that time he led the design of some of the company's most iconic products, such as iMacs and iPhones. He still counts the tech giant as a client through his new company, LoveFrom, which is a collaboration of designers, artists and musicians.
The partnership with Airbnb is a sort of evolution of a long-standing friendship with Chesky. The pair are said to be close friends and have shared advice and guidance with one another for many years, but this is the first official collaboration.
"I'm thrilled to announce that Jony and his partners at LoveFrom will be engaging in a special collaboration with me and the Airbnb team," said Chesky. "We have made the decision to work together through a multi-year relationship to design the next generation of Airbnb products and services.
"Jony will also help us continue to develop our internal design team, which he believes to be one of the world's best. I know he is particularly excited about a relationship that will evolve to become a deep collaboration with our creative team."
Three senior designers recently left Airbnb, according to The Information, with design chief Alex Schleifer also being told his position will be switched to a part-time role at the company.
The firm was one of the biggest disruptors of the last decade, changing the way people travel and select places to stay. It previously announced plans to build VR and AR-based products, but there aren't any details on the kinds of projects Ive will be working on as yet.
The deal also coincides with Airbnb's upcoming initial public offering which is expected to be one of the largest US stock market listings of 2020.
-
Bigger salaries, more burnout: Is the CISO role in crisis?In-depth CISOs are more stressed than ever before – but why is this and what can be done?
-
Cheap cyber crime kits can be bought on the dark web for less than $25News Research from NordVPN shows phishing kits are now widely available on the dark web and via messaging apps like Telegram, and are often selling for less than $25.
-
The ultimate guide to getting your killer app off the groundIndustry Insight When building software, the process of designing, testing, prototyping, and perfecting your project is never ending
-
New macOS Ventura security features make for a compelling upgradeAnalysis Organisations will be sure to welcome the new security features, as well as the collaboration and organisational tools included in the new free update
-
How to turn on Bluetooth for Windows 10In-depth A step by step guide to turning on Bluetooth in Windows 10 and easily connect your keyboard, mouse, headphones, or printer
-
Microsoft reveals price decreases for Teams Rooms, new free tierNews Under the new plans, businesses with certified hardware can use the service at no extra cost
-
Google urges Apple to embrace RCS as standard, ditch SMS for Android textsNews #GetTheMessage seeks to create viral pressure on Apple, with Google shaming its competitor for clinging to standards from which the rest of the market has moved on
-
Google to pay $90 million settlement over Play Store billing disputeNews The tech giant also announced changes to its Developer Distribution Agreement
-
Mozilla suspends cryptocurrency donations following backlashNews However, the option to donate bitcoin to the Mozilla Foundation might return in the future
-
Nikulipe: Has COVID democratised online payments?Case Studies With more customers forced to buy online, are merchants offering the right ways to pay?
