Jony Ive Explains Apple's Grand Plan

Scarlett Kilcooley-O’Halloran, Vogue:

“At Apple we don’t look at the world through predetermined market opportunities. What we’ve done fairly consistently is try to invest tremendous care in the development of our products,” Ive explained. “It’s not so much about things being touched personally – there are many ways to craft something. It’s easy to assume that just because you make something in small volumes, not using many tools, that there is integrity and care – that is a false assumption.”

“Machines for us are like tools for the craftsman,” Newson agreed. “We all use something – you can’t drill holes with your fingers. Whether it’s a knife, a needle or a machine, we all need the help of a device.”

This is a fascinating thought and one I honestly never fully considered. Ive is essentially arguing that even products – like the iPhone or Apple Watch – that are built in mass, often for millions of customers, can have a level of craftsmanship that is equal to products that are built on a much smaller scale.

I’ve talked to industrial designers in the past and they’ve actually eluded to this too. One of my good friends Don Lehman once said that Apple is basically making “Rolex’s for the masses.”  This was before the Apple Watch of course, but now it seems like they really are.