{"id":269429,"date":"2025-11-18T09:43:08","date_gmt":"2025-11-18T09:43:08","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/269429\/"},"modified":"2025-11-18T09:43:08","modified_gmt":"2025-11-18T09:43:08","slug":"the-designer-who-presented-the-iphone-air-to-the-world-has-left-apple-report-says","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/269429\/","title":{"rendered":"The Designer Who Presented the iPhone Air to the World Has Left Apple, Report Says"},"content":{"rendered":"

You don\u2019t always get to know the real reason someone leaves their job\u2014not even the guy in the video below, Abidur Chowdhury, an Apple industrial designer who played a \u201ckey role\u201d in developing the iPhone Air, and acted as its spokesman when it was introduced, but who has, according to Bloomberg<\/a>, left Apple for an AI startup.<\/p>\n

With that in mind, the Information reported<\/a> a little over a week ago that the iPhone Air is such a flop that Apple has delayed rolling out the next model. (Bloomberg\u2019s story on Chowdhury notes that a second iPhone Air will still happen, but not until 2027) Gizmodo\u2019s largely positive review<\/a> of the device found it too lightweight for its own good, with less-than-ideal battery life, and noted that if it \u201cends up going the way of the dodo like the iPhone Mini and Plus,\u201d it might turn out to be a \u201ctestbed for miniaturizing components into a smart glasses form factor\u201d and may include components of a foldable iPhone still to come.<\/p>\n

Bloomberg\u2019s story on Chowdhury\u2019s departure (attributed to anonymous \u201cpeople familiar with the move\u201d) is from Bloomberg\u2019s intrepid Apple scoop-getter, Mark Gurman, who has hastened to imply that he does not think the iPhone Air is some sort of corporate disaster that merits Chowdhury being forced out. \u201cHis exit is unrelated to the debut of the phone, which has seen its design praised despite underwhelming sales,\u201d Gurman tweeted<\/a>.<\/p>\n

His exit is unrelated to the debut of the phone, which has seen its design praised despite underwhelming sales. https:\/\/t.co\/sw2mtOGs58<\/a><\/p>\n

\u2014 Mark Gurman (@markgurman) November 18, 2025<\/a><\/p>\n

Chowdhury joined Apple in 2019, around the same time celebrity chief design officer Jony Ive departed the company.\u00a0According to reports<\/a>, that period would have coincided with the company\u2019s attempts to recover from the slow-motion meltdown that ensued when Ive seemingly lost his faith in Apple due to disagreements over what the Apple Watch was supposed to be, and then mostly stopped coming to work, and let his department basically atrophy.<\/p>\n

According to Gurman, Chowdhury\u2019s resignation \u201cmade waves internally, given his rising profile within the design team.\u201d<\/p>\n