Apple TV’s software designer bails on Cupertino

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The guy that designed Apple TV's software is leaving.
The guy that designed Apple TV's software is leaving.
Photo: Leander Kahney/Cult of Mac

Apple is losing one of the chief designers of the new Apple TV just months after the product launched to the public.

Designer Ben Keighran revealed that he is leaving the company after joining Apple four years ago when his company Chomp was purchased by Apple to inject fresh talent into Apple’s streaming box.

“I want to create not just a killer product, but my own iconic company,” Keighran told Recode in an interview, stating that he plans to leave soon to start something new.

Keighran’s departure comes after he spent the last three years overseeing the look and feel of Apple TV’s software. Other top Chomp employees have already left the company, such as co-founder Cathy Edwards who left two years ago.

Acquired talent leaving Apple right after a big project launch has become a bit of a trend lately at Apple. Senior Director Ian Rogers, who joined Apple when the company acquired Beats, left last year after Apple Music launched.

Keighran likely worked on a number of other unreleased Apple projects, but wouldn’t say what they were, other than telling Recode “we looked at many different ways of delivering an awesome TV experience.”

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