Another Apple industrial designer is leaving the company

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Airbnb logo 1
Miklu Silvanto, who joined Apple in October 2011, is leaving the company to join Airbnb.
Photo: Airbnb

Another Apple industrial designer is leaving Jony Ive’s iconic design team. Miklu Silvanto, who joined Apple in October 2011, is joining Airbnb’s new offshoot design studio Samara.

In his new role, Silvanto will help design future house prototypes. Samara has hired a number of experts in disciplines ranging from industrial design to roboticists and urban planners.

“Samara has a huge ambition that will be very difficult to carry out, but it’s exactly the kind of big, crazy gamble that these kinds of companies should be taking,” he hold Dezeen. “The nature of the work and the creative approach we’re taking make me optimistic for the future.”

According to his LinkedIn profile, Silvanto started his new role in April. It’s not clear exactly when he finished working at Apple. He still lists the role as his “Present” one although it’s highly unlikely that he’s doing both roles simultaneously.

A design team shakeup

Miklu Silvanto’s departure at Apple after more than seven years comes at a time when the design team is undergoing a shakeup.

Last month, three senior members of Apple’s Industrial Design (ID) group left the company. These included Daniele De Iuliis, Rico Zorkendorfer and Julian Hönig. They had been working at Apple since 1991, 2003, and 2010 respectively.

It’s not clear whether there’s some overriding reason why so many Apple designers are leaving at the same time. It comes at a time when iPhone sales are declining, while Apple is embracing Services.

Source: Dezeen

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