Sam and Jony Partnership
Wednesday, May 28, 2025 ⚓︎
Sam Altman and Jony Ive a few days ago announced an integration between OpenAI and Jony Ive’s startup, in a statement resembling a wedding announcement. I was skeptical of this partnership, and was surprised to see many tech commentators and podcasters largely positive about it. I see Jony Ive’s greatest work being behind him. Bringing him back to consumer electronics feels like a misstep. That’s why I was very pleased when I read Jason Snell’s thoughtful piece voicing similar doubts.
I agree with Snell: there is no evidence that Ive can innovate today the way that he did when he was working with Steve Jobs. Jony is an incredible designer, but he also had an incredible partner in Steve — someone who tempered aesthetics with usability. When Jony was given full creative control over Apple’s design processes, across hardware and software, his instincts went unchecked. He lacked the practical sensibility that Steve brought to the relationship, and the products made some weird tradeoffs for form over function.
Sam and Jony now claim to be working on a new central device, something beyond the phone and personal computer. But if no one is grounding the design process in the functional needs of regular people, I do not have high expectations for this new relationship.