Apple Loses Top UI Designer as Alan Dye Joins Meta

Apple Inc.’s head of user-interface design, Alan Dye, is leaving the company to join Meta, in a high-profile departure that points to intensifying competition in the wearable and AI-enabled hardware arena.

Apple confirmed Dye’s exit on Wednesday. In a statement, CEO Tim Cook said the company remains committed to design excellence and announced longtime designer Stephen Lemay as Dye’s interim replacement. 

Cook described Lemay as someone who “has played a key role in the design of every major Apple interface since 1999” and pledged that Apple’s design ethos will remain intact.

After the news broke, Meta CEO Mark Zuckerberg launched a new creative studio focused on combining design, fashion and technology for future devices. 

“Today we’re establishing a new creative studio in Reality Labs led by Alan Dye, who has spent nearly 20 years leading design at Apple,” he posted.

According to Zuckerberg, the goal is to “elevate design within Meta” and assemble a team with deep experience across hardware and software. 

“Alan will be joined by Billy Sorrentino, another acclaimed design lead from Apple; Joshua To, who has led our interface design across Reality Labs; our industrial design team led by Pete Bristol; and our metaverse design and art teams led by Jason Rubin,” Zuckerberg posted. 

He said the company intends to “treat intelligence as a new design material” for upcoming products.

Dye’s most recent public appearance was in June, when he unveiled ‘Liquid Glass,’ a sweeping redesign of Apple’s software interface across devices. 

Dye has worked at Apple since 2006 and became one of the design studio’s leaders in 2015 when Jony Ive stepped back from daily responsibilities. 

During his tenure, Dye contributed to several key transitions, including the iOS 7 visual overhaul and the shift from the iPhone’s physical home button to a swipe-based navigation system. 

He also played a key role in the interfaces for AirPods, CarPlay and Apple Watch features such as Activity Rings and ECG.

At Meta, Dye will report to Chief Technology Officer Andrew Bosworth and join a fast-expanding hardware roster that includes Quest headsets and Ray-Ban Meta smart glasses. 

As Meta intensifies its push into AR/VR and AI-infused wearables, the hire could mark a more serious challenge to Apple’s long-standing strength in harmonizing hardware design with user experience.