iPhone Air designer Abidur Chowdhury leaves Apple for AI startup, but it’s not about sales
When Apple unveiled the ultra-slim iPhone Air this year, industrial designer Abidur Chowdhury was front and center in the launch video, walking viewers through the device’s striking aesthetic. Just a few months after the phone hit stores, he’s left Apple for an artificial intelligence startup—fueling speculation about whether lukewarm sales played a part.
According to Mark Gurman, that’s not the case. Chowdhury’s exit is unrelated to the iPhone Air’s retail performance. Internally, his work on the design was praised, and chatter about a follow-up model continues to build. In other words, this wasn’t a reaction to a flop. If anything, it reflects a broader shift in the tech world: high-profile talent is increasingly moving toward AI, drawn by its rapid growth and cross-industry impact.
Chowdhury’s departure comes amid a years-long reshaping of Apple’s design ranks. Since the 2019 exit of Jony Ive, the studio has experienced a near-complete turnover. Some veterans retired, others spun out new ventures, and a few even joined Ive’s firm. The group recently began reporting directly to CEO Tim Cook following the retirement of long-time Chief Operating Officer Jeff Williams, signaling a new era for how Apple’s products are shaped. Chowdhury, whose profile had been rising inside Apple, is simply the latest notable name to move on.
The bigger picture is clear: Apple’s next wave of hardware will increasingly bear the fingerprints of a new generation of designers. And despite chatter about softer-than-expected sales for the first iPhone Air, the design itself landed well with critics and peers—setting the stage for a rumored second-generation model. As the AI boom attracts top creators and engineers, expect more high-visibility moves like this one, even from companies as storied as Apple.
