Apple's Head of Home Hardware Leaves for Smart Ring Maker Oura - MacRumors
Skip to Content

Apple's Head of Home Hardware Leaves for Smart Ring Maker Oura

Brian Lynch, the senior director on Apple's home hardware engineering team, is leaving Apple for smart ring company Oura, reports Bloomberg. Lynch accepted a role as Oura's senior vice president of hardware engineering.

Home Hub Command Center with Dome Base Siri Finder Feature
Oura has poached several employees from Apple over the last few years. Lynch's departure is apparently causing "fresh upheaval" on Apple's home products team as it is aiming to debut new home devices. Apple is rumored to be working on a smart home hub, but its launch has been pushed back due o Siri development delays.

The hub launch is now planned for September 2026, with other devices like a home security and automation sensor and a more advanced tabletop robot in development for 2027. Apple also has plans for smart glasses, a wearable AI pendant or pin, and AirPods with cameras.

Lynch worked at Apple for over 20 years, and prior to overseeing smart home devices, he was on Apple's now-shuttered car development team. Lynch worked under Matt Costello, who also oversees audio engineering and Beats devices. Costello reports to John Ternus, Apple's hardware engineering chief.

Popular Stories

iPhone Ultra Fold Feature

Foldable iPhone Duo Will Start at $2,000, Won't Launch Until at Least October

Tuesday September 8, 2026 9:45 pm PDT by
Following some recent speculation that Apple could release its foldable phone under the "iPhone Duo" name, it appears that will indeed be the case, according to Bloomberg's Mark Gurman. For months now, the foldable iPhone has generally been referred to as the "iPhone Ultra," even internally, but Apple is apparently going in a different direction for the official name, emphasizing the...
iPhone Ultra Fold Feature

Foldable iPhone Development History and Price Revealed in New Report

Tuesday September 8, 2026 5:55 am PDT by
Former Apple CEO Tim Cook played a major role in the development of the foldable iPhone, which could reach around $3,000 with storage upgrades, according to new details shared by Bloomberg's Mark Gurman. Early in the development of the foldable iPhone, the company reportedly targeted a starting retail price of $1,999, hoping to come under the "potentially controversial $2,000 barrier." The...
airpods pro 3 blue

AirPods With Cameras Were Supposed to Debut Today, Now Delayed

Wednesday September 9, 2026 4:35 am PDT by
Apple planned to introduce high-end in-ear AirPods with built-in cameras for analyzing the surrounding environment at today's event, but the launch has been pushed to next year, Bloomberg's Mark Gurman reports. In early August, Gurman said the earbuds were progressing well enough to potentially ship before the end of the year. By mid-August, though, he reported that Apple had pulled the model...

Top Rated Comments

26 weeks ago
Bro was probably tired of watching every product he develops languish in the pipeline.
Score: 33 Votes (Like | Disagree)
TheGhostWalker Avatar
26 weeks ago
Tim Cooks resignation can't be far away now
Score: 19 Votes (Like | Disagree)
KENESS Avatar
26 weeks ago
I'm not impressed with Apple's Home hardware landscape right now, so this may be a good thing.
Score: 18 Votes (Like | Disagree)
26 weeks ago
Probably got tired of having his hardware be delayed by the Siri department's vaporware.
Score: 15 Votes (Like | Disagree)
26 weeks ago
"Fresh upheaval" feels like Gurman spinning a narrative in the absence of facts beyond simply reporting on an employee departure, which happens at every tech company all the time.

What's funny about Gurman's reporting on Apple departures is that he never breathlessly reports them for other companies he covers. For example, Gurman wrote extensively about Apple AI researcher Ruoming Pang who left Apple for Meta, but there were crickets from him when Pang left Meta for OpenAI just seven months later.
Score: 15 Votes (Like | Disagree)
Mrkevinfinnerty Avatar
26 weeks ago
Apple had a Head of Home Hardware?
Score: 10 Votes (Like | Disagree)