Abidur Chowdhury, iPhone Air Designer, Leaves Apple for an AI Start-up

Abidur Chowdhury, the man responsible for the iPhone Air’s design, has chosen to leave Apple. The engineer is set to pursue a new direction by joining an AI-focused start-up. What does this departure really mean?

He was one of Apple’s rising stars: an engineer advancing quickly through the ranks and seemingly destined for a major future. That future, however, will not be at the Cupertino company. Abidur Chowdhury has resigned and is moving to a start-up working in artificial intelligence, although no further details have been disclosed.

The job market is constantly shifting, with people arriving and leaving according to vacancies and opportunities. Even so, Abidur Chowdhury’s exit raises questions. The British designer joined Apple’s design division in 2019, with the task of taking up the mantle from Jony Ive, and is leaving while his career was still on an upward trajectory.

Abidur Chowdhury, Apple’s rising talent, moves into AI

In recent times, Abidur Chowdhury had gained increasing responsibility at the Cupertino firm. He is the person behind the iPhone Air design. Although he kept a low profile and was not widely known by the public, Apple nonetheless put him in the spotlight during its most recent Keynote. When the iPhone Air was unveiled, it was Chowdhury’s voice that was heard before John Ternus, possibly the future CEO, took over.

A significant departure from Apple’s design team

This is not an insignificant exit. Bloomberg reports that the abrupt resignation has caused considerable upheaval within the company. Moreover, it is not the only notable departure from the design division in recent months: Evans Hankey, Tang Tan, Cyrus Daniel and Erik de Jong have all resigned to work elsewhere.

Also read – iPhone Air review: a particular vision of the future

Why the AI sector is attracting designers and engineers

Does this point to dissatisfaction within the company? Not necessarily. Silicon Valley is a demanding environment, and the fast-growing AI sector is drawing more and more engineers and designers who want to make their mark in less colossal organisations. This is likely to be one of Chowdhury’s motivations.

Bloomberg makes one important clarification: Chowdhury’s departure is in no way connected to the iPhone Air’s commercial failure. While the handset did not draw the crowds, its design was praised by critics and users alike. Apple may even have been aware that disappointing sales were on the horizon before its release, with the iPhone Air perhaps serving only as a trial run ahead of the iPhone Fold’s launch in 2026.

In any event, losing a designer such as Abidur Chowdhury is not good news for Apple, which is parting ways with an important talent.