Famous for his Apple designs and not saying much, Jony Ive has proved to the world that he actually has a voice and used it to berate those who copy the look of Apple's products.
In a rare interview with the Sunday Times, Ive spoke of his relationship with the "laser-focused" Steve Jobs, revealed his passion for design and his distaste for those who copy Apple's much-loved designs.
Naming no names, Jobs simply said when asked about design copycats that "it's theft".
He noted that when an Apple product is emulated, it is not just what it looks like that is half-inched but the blood, sweat and tears that go into making the thing.
"What's copied isn't just a design, it's thousands and thousands of hours of struggle," said Ive.
"It's only when you've achieved what you set out to do that you can say, 'This was worth pursuing.' It takes years of investment, years of pain."
Beauty and integrity
Ive also revealed the reason why he puts so much passion into producing products and the key to why Apple's devices sell and it is all to do with "beauty and integrity".
"We're surrounded by anonymous, poorly made objects. It's tempting to think it's because the people who use them don't care - just like the people who make them. But what we've shown is that people do care.
"It's not just about aesthetics. They care about things that are thoughtfully conceived and well made. We make and sell a very, very large number of (hopefully) beautiful, well-made things. Our success is a victory for purity, integrity - for giving a damn."
As for what beautiful, well-made thing is next Ive is giving nothing away - except that he may dabble in a bit of chess.
When asked about the rumoured iWatch he said: "Obviously, there are rumours about us working on... and, obviously, I'm not going to talk about that. It's a game of chess, isn't it?"
There we have it, straight from Ive's mouth - the next Apple device is the iChess. You heard it here first.
Via the Times (paywall)
