Apple Design Chief Jony Ive Awarded 2018 Stephen Hawking Fellowship

Wednesday September 26, 2018 7:55 PM PDT by Juli Clover
Apple Design Chief Jony Ive has been awarded the 2018 Stephen Hawking Fellowship, the Cambridge Union announced on Tuesday.

Charles Connor, Cambridge Union Society President, said Ive was one of the "most influential individuals in modern technology" when announcing the award.

Ive will speak during the Michaelmas term (the first academic term) at Cambridge University's Debating Chamber, where he is expected to offer "reflection on his career, split with a more general reflection on technology and design as a whole."

The fellowship, which is an honorary scholarship to recognize the recipients' contributions to STEM fields and social discourse, was created by the Cambridge Union Society in partnership with professor Stephen Hawking in 2017.

Stephen Hawking delivered the Inaugural Fellowship Lecture in November of 2017 after the Union Society approached him about the creation of a fellowship in his name. It was one of his last public appearances before his death in 2018.

Tag: Jony Ive
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centauratlas
17 months ago
He is fine for some things, but he needs someone to exercise a bit of control over him which Steve J did. The obsession with thinness is fine for some products, e.g. perhaps a MacBook Air or Apple Watch, but not others, e.g. a MacBook Pro or Mac Pro. They are different markets with different needs and use cases.

Sure, making them look good is fine, but not at the expense of functionality and some of the thinness over function decisions have been poor. If the MacBook Pro is 1/2 inch thicker but more functional or the Mac Pro is the old cheese grater design, those are fine for the markets for which they are designed.
Rating: 22 Votes
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macduke
17 months ago
Every time I see Jony’s face on MacRumors my heart skips a beat because I fear he’s stepping down or worse. Some people here seem to hate him but I never want him to leave Apple. He was Steve’s favorite and for good reason. Sure some of his videos are ridiculous but he does good design work for the most part.
Rating: 22 Votes
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Tamagotchi
17 months ago

Every time I see Jony’s face on MacRumors my heart skips a beat because I fear he’s stepping down or worse. Some people here seem to hate him but I never want him to leave Apple. He was Steve’s favorite and for good reason. Sure some of his videos are ridiculous but he does good design work for the most part.


I think you’ve forgotten about Scott Forstall. Apple is in need of someone like him - to bring in some innovation, for once, and to stop milking the cow. IMO get rid of Cook and Ive.
Rating: 18 Votes
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Nicksd84
17 months ago

Every time I see Jony’s face on MacRumors my heart skips a beat because I fear he’s stepping down or worse. Some people here seem to hate him but I never want him to leave Apple. He was Steve’s favorite and for good reason. Sure some of his videos are ridiculous but he does good design work for the most part.


Hard disagree. The iPhone 6 model design was horrible to use in the hand. No hard sides to hold on to and a slippery as soap back.
Rating: 13 Votes
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richinaus
17 months ago

I think you’ve forgotten about Scott Forstall. Apple is in need of someone like him - to bring in some innovation, for once, and to stop milking the cow. IMO get rid of Cook and Ive.


I am more than happy to forget this guy. From my perspective Apple immediately improved upon his departure.
Rating: 8 Votes
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MarkB786
17 months ago
"where he is expected to offer "reflection on his career, split with a more general reflection on technology and design as a whole."

Ive (apply Ive accent): " Well, the first try was smooth, but not smooth enough. So I told them Smoother! And they used this metal stuff, and it was smoother. Then the curves, I told the engineers, can you make it curvier? You know, sexy sassy curvy. And then they said they couldn't, and I said You Must! And sure enough, it was curvier. Then I said...."

It's going to be an engaging reflection time! Hawking would have been proud! God help us when our proudest human achievement is immersive phone design.
Rating: 7 Votes
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Naraxus
17 months ago
Hopefully the next "award" he receives is a pink slip from Apple. He's ego is so out of control and he's ruined many a great product with his meddling
Rating: 7 Votes
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miniyou64
17 months ago
He’s not even in the same league without Steve driving
Rating: 6 Votes
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rom3o
17 months ago
I still don’t get how an ingenious designer like him can be fine with that annoying protruding camera that makes iPhones wobble and clatter whenever lying on hard surfaces. Why not make the housing slightly thicker and use the extra space for more battery capacity?
Rating: 5 Votes
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MarkB786
17 months ago
Wow. Those iPhone curves must have amazing math behind them. Like fourier transform astrophysics stuff. Who knew?

Maybe Louis Vuitton could have been awarded this amazing fellowship if he was still around.No, wait; he wasn't a Brit.
Rating: 5 Votes
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