Former iPhone Industrial Jony Ive, who recently sold his AI devices startup 'io' to Sam Altman’s OpenAI for $6.5 billion, has shared a key life lesson he learned from Apple co-founder Steve Jobs. Ive, who worked closely with Jobs for over a decade creating products like the iPhone, iPad, and MacBook, said that Jobs taught him the power of true focus.
Working with Jobs, known for his demanding nature, was challenging but rewarding, CNBC Make It quoted Ive as saying at a Vanity Fair event in 2014. He described Jobs as "the most remarkably focused person I’ve ever met in my life."
"You can achieve so much when you truly focus," Ive recalled Jobs teaching him, noting, "it still shocks me how few people actually practise this." Ive defined true focus as a continuous effort, present in "every minute" of every waking moment, rather than something you can simply switch on and off. "You don’t decide on Monday, ‘You know what? I’m going to be focused'," he said.
The designer added that true focus demands sacrifice. He recalled Jobs frequently questioning him: "How many things have you said no to?" Initially, Ive would list ideas and opportunities he had rejected, but admitted he "wasn’t vaguely interested in doing those things anyway, so there was no real sacrifice."
Eventually, Ive understood that Jobs' question went beyond simply prioritising tasks. He learnt that "What focus means is saying ‘no’ to something that you, with every bone in your body, think is a phenomenal idea, and you wake up thinking about it, but you say no to it because you’re focusing on something else."
OpenAI's acquisition of 'io' was its most expensive OpenAI's purchase of Ive's AI device startup, 'io', for $6.5 billion marks its most expensive acquisition to date. This deal will provide OpenAI with a dedicated unit for developing AI-powered devices. The acquisition also secures the services of Ive and other former Apple designers who were involved in creating iconic products such as the iPhone.
Ive's return to consumer tech with 'rare visionary' Sam Altman
For the British-born designer, the move to OpenAI marks a high-profile return to the consumer technology industry he helped pioneer. Working for years alongside Jobs, Ive crafted the look and feel of the modern smartphone, in addition to products like the iPod, iPad, and Apple Watch. He left Apple in 2019.
When Ive quit Apple, CEO Tim Cook suggested they would remain collaborators. But, they never released a product together after Ive’s exit. Now, the designer is embarking on a new collaboration with Sam Altman, whom he has called a "rare visionary."
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