Apple Confirms Retirement of Senior Designer Greg Christie Later This Year
Apple has confirmed the departure of Greg Christie, part of the original team behind the iPhone. His leaving the company was previously reported by 9to5Mac and was said to follow a falling out between Christie and Jony Ive, Apple's design chief.
The WSJ reports that Christie's "human interface" team will now report to Jonathan Ive, rather than the company's software head Craig Federighi.
In a statement given to the Financial Times, Apple says that Christie has been planning to retire later this year and is still within the company.
Greg has been planning to retire later this year after nearly 20 years at Apple. He has made vital contributions to Apple products across the board, and built a world-class Human Interface team which has worked closely with Jony for many years.
Christie has worked with Apple since 1996 and was credited with the development of the "Slide to Unlock" feature of iPhones and iPads, though he is named as an inventor on hundreds of other patents.
New York Times reporter Brian X. Chen tweeted that Christie's retirement was announced within the company "weeks ago".
Apple's statement doesn't directly address the rumor that Greg Christie and Jony Ive had clashed over design direction, nor does the company specify his current role.
Update 6:25PM PDT: TechCrunch reports that Christie's retirement has been known within the company for weeks and that there has "been a distinct lack of drama in this transition". The piece also says Christie will stay at Apple for a while longer working on "special projects", similar to former SVP Bob Mansfield, and that he has moved into a role with no direct reports.
Update 6:51PM PDT: John Gruber concurs, saying that his sources inside Apple say that while there have been disagreements between Christie and Ive, it isn't anything out of the ordinary. He also says Christie may be staying at the company through the end of the year.
The basic gist I’ve heard is that Christie is a guy who’s been in a high-pressure, high-profile job for 18 years, most of it reporting to Steve Jobs. He’s made a lot of money and is ready to enjoy it. That’s largely in line with the Apple PR line given to the WSJ, but I heard all of this from ground-level Cupertino-area pixel-pushing designers.
Popular Stories
Apple today released iOS 18.5 and iPadOS 18.5, the fifth updates to the iOS 18 and iPadOS 18 operating systems that came out last September. iOS 18.5 and iPadOS 18.5 come a little over a month after Apple released iOS 18.4 and iPadOS 18.4.
The new software can be downloaded on eligible iPhones and iPads over-the-air by going to Settings > General > Software Update. The iOS 18.5 update has a...
Apple is considering raising prices for its upcoming iPhone 17 models set to release this fall, according to people familiar with the matter cited by The Wall Street Journal.
The company reportedly aims to pair the potential price hikes with new features and design changes to justify the increased cost to consumers, rather than attributing them to U.S. tariffs on goods from China.
The...
Apple today released tvOS 18.5, the latest version of the tvOS operating system. tvOS 18.5 comes a little over a month after the launch of tvOS 18.4, and it is available for the Apple TV 4K and Apple TV HD models.
tvOS 18.5 can be downloaded using the Settings app on the Apple TV. Open up Settings and go to System > Software Update to get the new software. Apple TV owners who have...
Following more than a month of beta testing, Apple is expected to release iOS 18.5 to the general public this week. While the software update is relatively minor, it still includes a handful of new features and changes for iPhones.
Below, we recap everything new in iOS 18.5.
Pride Wallpaper
Apple recently announced its 2025 Pride Collection, including a new Apple Watch band, watch face,...
Apple today released macOS Sequoia 15.5, the fifth major update to the macOS Sequoia operating system that launched last September. macOS Sequoia 15.5 comes a little over a month after the launch of macOS Sequoia 15.4.
Mac users can download the macOS Sequoia 15.5 update through the Software Update section of System Settings. It is available for free on all Macs able to run ...
Apple acquired Canadian startup Mayday Labs in April 2024, according to a European Commission listing, spotted by French blog MacGeneration. The acquisition had not received widespread attention from tech publications until now.
Apple is legally required to report certain acquisitions to the European Commission, under the terms of the EU's Digital Markets Act.
Mayday Labs founder Jeremy...
With Apple's developer conference where it will show off iOS 19 just a month away, the company is wrapping up work on iOS 18.5 ahead of an imminent release to deliver a few new features and updates.
This week also saw a number of iPhone-related rumors, encompassing not only this year's iPhone 17 lineup but also Apple's plans for 2026 and 2027, even as Apple's Eddy Cue suggested AI could make ...